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STATE LIBRARY OF PENNSYLVANIA
main,stks 363.973K95ZL92
Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania;

THE KU KLUX KLAN IN PENNSYLVANIA

A Study in
Nativism

EMERSON HUNSBERGER LOUCKS

The Telegraph Press
New York-Harrisburg, Pa. — 1936

rights reserved, including the right to reprodi
this book or portions thereof, in any form

363.973

K95Z

— ■ ^

Printed in the United States of America
by The Telegraph Press, Harrisburg, Pa.

Preface

M' Chapter I : Some Beginnings of Nativism 1

Nativism as a phase of cultural adjustment— The colonial background
of nativism— Its expression during the early years of the Republic —
The Brutus Letters— The Native American Party: its principles and
influence— The Rise of Know-Nothingism— The effect of the slavery
controversy upon nativism— Post Civil War foreign immigration— The
School Policy of the Roman Catholic Church— The founding of the
American Protective Association— Its propaganda and political history.

)^Chapter II : The Revival of the Ku Klux Klan 15

Xhe- i>Fcr -e qu i&^ tie s- o f nativ i^sm--ami-4bei-g--i^««^Ge--in-4h&-post-'World
W-a-F-f>€fied— The re-establishment of the Ku Klux Klan- Its founder
— The role of the Southern Publicity Association in its growth —
The spread of Klan violence— Press exposures and governmental in-
vestigations.

Chapter III : The Klan Moves Into Pennsylvania ... 25

Early organizers : Atkins and Rich — Provincial organization — The use
of local men as Kleagles— Early difficulties— The northern conspiracy
against Atlanta — Progress in eastern Pennsylvania — Freeman's admin-
istration—Trouble with the "Dutch" — Estimated membership — Rea-
sons for its growth — Characteristics of Klan literature — The strategy
of Klan "lecturers" — The handicaps of its critics— Belief in the Klan
as an instrument of reform — Emphasis on personal rather than in-
stitutional reform.

Chapter IV: The Klan Changes Hands: Progress in

Pennsylvania Under the Evans Regime .... 45

The plan to oust Simmons from administrative control of the Order —
D. C. Stephenson's cooperation and his reward — The successful cul-
mination of this efTort — The efifect of Evans' control upon the South —
The Evans-Stephenson regime in Pennsylvania — Increased use of
demonstrations — The Carnegie, Scottdale and Lilly riots — The local
press and Klan publicity — Cross burnings — The types of people who
joined the Order.

)/ Chapter V: The Organization of the Klan 62

The adoption of a written constitution — The subdivisions of the
"empire" — The "imperial" government — The organization and powers
of the national Klonvokation — The Kloncilium as a judicial and ad-
visory body — The centralization of power in the office of the Imperial
Wizard — The "Realm" organization — Provisional and chartered stages
— The control of the Kloreros by the Grand Dragons — Provincial or-
ganization — The organization of the local klantons — The Kleagle's

iii

289981

Oath of Loyalty te IraporiaJ- Wizafd Evans— The advantages of secur-
ing charters— The Iceal- an<{ -"sraod" Tribanals^Subadiary organiza-
tions : The Knights KameHia and rCiiights of the Great Forest— The
mihtary order: Klavahers— The mihtary line of communication—
I-inancing the Order— Klectokens— Imperial and realm taxes— Local
dues— An estimate of the total expense of maintenance.

■. /

,\ Chapter VI : The Klan and Klansmen : Fraternalism 86

Importance of the emphasis on fraternalism— Social and recreational
activities of the Order: their number and characteristics— Klan
charities--The loose methods used— Later committee organization and
control— Character of the recipients of Klan charity— The Abbott and
Lilly iunds— Klan Haven— Fraternalism as a business asset— Klan
boycotts against opposition groups— Klan operated businesses— The
National Service Club— The Empire Mutual Insurance Company-
Local Klan-sponsored business enterprises.

y Chapter VII: The Klan and the State: Political

Activities 97

Political potency of minority blocs— Assertion of the right of nativists
to control the nation's culture— The inevitability of political action as
an outgrowth of Klan dogma— The selection of candidates for public
office— Criteria used— Secrecy as a political asset— The negative char-
acter of the Klan's political action— The fear of the unity and political
power of the Catholic Church— The inherent weakness of Protestant-
't^"?~ •''^ opposition to Catholic candidates and office-holders-
Relative inactivity of the Rich regime-Local Klan support given
Pmchot— Hostility to LaFollette's candidacy— Increased political
activity under Herbert C. Shaw-The anti-Smith campaign— Analysis
of the presidential vote-The Klan's legislative program for Penn-
sylvania— Basis of hostility to the World Court and the League of
Mations— The flurry over "the Mexican Question."

y Chapter VIII : The Klan and the Church : Religious

Activities of the Order Ug

The prolific use of familiar religious vocabulary and symbolism— The
Klan's early religiosity— The Kansas City Klonvokation— Devotions
at local and state meetings— Klan hymnology— Church visitations—
Lttect of the Klan upon the religious life of its members- Its efTect
upon church membership— Evidence of its devisive efTect upon certain
parishes— Its efTect upon the ministers who became members— Four
cases— Its efTect upon Protestant-Catholic relationships.

X Chapter IX: The Klan and the Schools : Educational

Activities of the Order I34

The issues involved in "the school question"— The attitude of the
Catholic Church relative to education— The Klan criticism of Catho-

, P^''°^ '^t',"'~'^''^ ^'^"'^ °^ principle of "democratic con-
trol — Ihe Klan and consolidation of school districts— Its support of

a Federal Department of Public Education-Klan cntena of the
"American" public school— Klan attempts to secure daily Bible read-
ing from an accepted Protestant text-Insistence ui^n the display of
thi American flag-Hostility to Catholic teachers-Paucity of results
—Efforts against certain text-books and symbols of alienism and
"Catholicism"— The education of Klansmen— The National Depart-
ment of Education and Publicity of the Order.

X Chapter X : The Women of the Ku Klux Klan

149

The charterino- of the women's Order— Subsidies granted by the
men's Order— Attempts to absorb existing women's nativist societies
—Elevation of Miss Robbie Gill to the office of Imperial Commander-
Initial efforts to organize the women in Pennsylvania— Mary I. Good-
win's leadership— The cooperation of the men's Order in recruiting—
The political, religious and educational activities of the women s Order
—The emphasis on charities— Klan Haven Association- The burning
of the Home— Efforts of the men's organization to get control of the
Association— Its reorganization under joint control— Growing interfer-
ence of the men with the women's Order— The ousting of Mrs. Good-
win—The Detroit Klonvokation— The Cantey-Winter feud m Phila-
delphia—The secession movement within the women's Order.

Chapter XI: The Decline of the Ku Klux Klan in
Pennsylvania : Dissatisfaction in the Eastern
Province

Rapid decline after 1925— The effect of changed conditions— Growing
dissention within the Order— Bad leadership— The disturbing radicals
—Political factionalism— Effect of arbitrary banishments— Hostility to
Winter's leadership in Philadelphia— His persecution of Cantey and
Laubach— The organization of the Super Secret Society— Its activities
—The retaliation of the K. D. of F.— Resultant disorganization.

Chapter XII: The Decline of the Ku Klux Klan in

Pennsylvania: Revolt in Province II 176

The movement to oust Sam Rich— The Westmoreland County Klan's
"Bill of Complaint"— The cooperation of Allegheny and other
counties in the movement— The forced trial of Rich and his subsequent
banishment— The temporary Grand 'Dragons : Robinson and Spratt—
The controversy over the ratification of Herbert C. Shaw — His un-
popularity in western Pennsylvania— Ths famous $100,000 damage
suit against the leaders of the dissatisfied Klansmen— The nature of
the evidence submitted— The defeat of the Klan— Its loss of_ prestige
and membership in western Pennsylvania— The metamorphosis of the
Klan into local social clubs.

Critical Essay on Bibliography 200

Index . . . , 210

PREFACE

The revived Ku Klux Klan and its stormy career is but one
chapter in the history of American nativism. Other eventful
chapters were written by the American Protective Association,
by the Know Nothings and by many lesser organizations. Indeed,
if one digs beneath the peculiar veneer given to nativism by the
cult of national patriotism, it is easy to observe the same funda-
mental forces at work which have everywhere characterized the
difficult process of adjustment between groups of differing cul-
tures. In recent history the nation-state has increasingly become
the center of popular loyalty. Hence protection of the recognized
"national culture" against "alien influences" is felt to be especially
virtuous. In an earlier age Hussites, Albigenses or Moors were
the "aliens." Different times produce different vocabularies.
Nativism to its devotees is the modern orthodoxy. • :

As the Ku Klux Klan was not the first chapter, so there is
good reason to believe that it will not be the last chapter in the
nativistic phase of cultural* conflict and adjustment. Whenever
circumstances combine to make the process sufficiently painful,
nativists will again rally to engage "aliens" and their sympathizers
in combat. The succession of nativist movements in the United
States has produced little change in principles. Some refinements
in procedure have occurred. The Know Nothings, for instance,
warned by their predecessors of the 1830's and 1840's of the
futility of attempting political action through a separate nativist
party, learned to bore within the existing party structure and
use it effectively. The American Protective Association in the
1890's and the recent Ku Klux Klan both learned the value of
secrecy from the earlier Know Nothings. The next nativist move-
ment could profit much by the experience of the Klan. One
wonders whether the disaster occasioned by poor leadership and
indiscriminate membership will be remembered.

'"Cultural" is used here and throughout this work in its broad connotation to in-
i.lude economic, political, religious and social factors — the mores in general,

Of peculiar value to the historian of national culture are the
periods when nativism becomes militant. It is during these periods
that the population tends to separate into rather well defined
classes which differ in their fundamental loyalties. The numbers
within these classes can then be measured with some accuracy and
their effectiveness as pressure groups in society can be determmed.

This study was undertaken with the conviction that a detailed
picture of the Ku Klux Klan limited to a relatively small part
of the "Invisible Empire" would prove more valuable than a
more general but necessarily more superficial study. It would,
moreover, serve as a needed check upon the earlier general ac-
counts. The author chose the "Realm" of Pennsylvania as a
field for research primarily because the growth, leadership and
methods of the Klan in Pennsylvania were representative so far
as the northern and eastern Realms were concerned. Moreover,
the movement in Pennsylvania was especially interesting for the
reason that it revealed greater persistence in this state than in
any other state of the Union. While Klan membership never
reached as high a total in Pennsylvania as in some other states—
notably Texas, Ohio, Florida and Michigan— the paying member-
ship in every other state had fallen below that of Pennsylvama
by 1930.

In the preparation of this study, the writer has made every
effort not only to learn the point of view of the leaders of the
movement but also to understand the Klan as the ordinary rank
and file members understood it. Scores of individuals were in-
terviewed including men who were then active members and men
whose membership had lapsed or who had deliberately resigned
from the Order. Their statements were checked and compared
with each other and/ with the statements of non-Klansmen and
of anti-Klansmen in their respective communities.

The task of securing accurate data was not without its peculiar
difficulties. By 1930. when this study was begun, most of the
local Klans over the state had been disbanded. Significantly
enough the records of meetings and activities generally kept by
local officials were not available. When the Order was discredited
much of this written material was felt to be dangerously implicat-
ing or at least to be the basis of possible litigation and was

consequently destroyed. Again, where there were warring fac~
tions within local Klans, materials were often destroyed to pre-
vent the opposing faction from securing them and, in some cases,
to thwart the efforts of unpopular state officials who tried to
collect them.

The reluctance of many Klansmen to talk freely of their ex-
perience was due less to conscientious scruples resulting from
their oaths of secrecy than to other reasons. Certainly in many
instances it was eloquent testimony of the fear which still re-
mained in their minds as a result of the threats and recrimination
and litigation that had characterized former days of active mem-
bership. Some refused to discuss the Klan unless a friend was
present as a witness. In the case of one former Realm official,
a satisfactory interview was secured only after two years of
efJort. In few cases was the first interview satisfactory; re-
peated visits had to be made.

When interviewing the author always submitted credentials
from the Chairman of his Dissertation Committee, a member of
the Faculty of Political Science of Columbia University, specify-
ing the strictly academic nature of the study. Besides, he usually
had introductions from other Klansmen. Nevertheless, important
mformation was frequently given only upon promise not to re-
veal Its source. In consequence, dozens of persons who have
been very helpful to the writer must remain unacknowledged in
the pages which follow.

The author wishes to express his thanks to Rev. John F.
Strayer whose helpfulness in securing information has been in-
valuable, and to all those Klansmen, ex-KIansmen, ministers,
school officials, newspaper editors and others who were courteous
enough to grant interviews, answer letters of inquiry, or fill in
questionnaires, supplying the data without which the following
pages could not have been written. He is, of course, deeply in-
debted to David Saville Muzzey, Evarts Boutell Greene and John
A. Krout who, as members of his dissertation committee gave
invaluable counsel and suggestions.

Emerson H. Loucks.

State Teachers College,
Shippensburg, Pa.,
September, 1936.

CHAPTER 1

Some Beginnings of Nativism

"Awake Americans, the liberties and institutions of
this country are in danger!" — The Omaha American

The elements of the struggle which found expression in the re-
cent Ku Klux Klan movement are by no means new phenomena
in history. The confrontation of peoples of differing economic,
religious or political beliefs and practices and the consequent
need of adjustment to each other has always been productive of
stress and strain. When periods made difficult by such adjust-
ment have coincided with periods of general instability, open con-
flict accompanied by violence has not been unusual as is shown
by the history of the Age of Religious Wars, the Age of Napoleon
and of Metternich as well as the more recent Post-war Era.

The organization of the western world into competitive nation-
states which has been so prominent a characteristic of recent times
has given a nationalistic emphasis to cultural conflict and some-
what changed its vocabulary. Nevertheless, the older economic,
racial and religious elements are all involved. Cultural dififer-
ences, instead of being merely strange or repugnant, are dis-
paragingly labeled "foreign" and nativism is the term commonly
used to designate the movement against all such "alien" elements
and influences. It is a term, however, which includes more than
an expressed partiality to the native-born and their culture in
preference to the foreign-born. In reality it signifies a hostility
to divergent cultural elements which differentiate many natives as
well as foreigners from the prescribed national standard. On the
other hand it is a useful term because the word itself suggests
the fact that loyalty to the nation and the "true" national culture
(self-defined by nativists) has been a major source of the
emotional force and of the prestige which nativism has exploited
and upon which it has fed and grown,

2 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

From the very beginning of our colonial history, the cultural
struggle in one or another of its fundamental aspects, free from
its more nationalistic color, has been clearly observable. The
early "Bible Commonwealth" of Massachusetts, acting on the
belief that Church and State should "stand together . . . the
one being helpful to the other," limited the body politic to ap-
proved church members and mercilessly suppressed political and
religious dissent, persecuting variants within the Puritan group as
well as Catholics and Quakers.

If circumstances required more liberality in the initial adjust-
ments between religious groups in Maryland and Pennsylvania, it
will be remembered that outside the scope of the specific adjust-
ments in each case, there was scant toleration. Denial of the
Trinity was a capital of¥ense in Maryland. In Pennsylvania at-
tendance at public worship was required and political privileges
were limited to Christians. Indeed, in both Pennsylvania and
Rhode Island, the most liberal of all the colonies, equality of
political rights continued to be denied to Catholics during the
early eighteenth century.

With the winning of independence and with the rapid increase
of national feeling incident to the Revolutionary War and the
critical years following, it became more and more prevalent to
disparage religious and political variants as foreign and un-
American. Anglican churchmen were among those who suffered
greatly under charges of disloyalty and alienism. Jefferson and
his followers, whose anti-Federalist and anti-Trinitarian beliefs
made them distasteful to many, were damned as "Jacobins." On
the other hand the aristocratic Hamilton and his "well-born" fol-
lowers especially among the New England shippers were dubbed
the "prigarchy" and "the English Junto."

It is significant that the "defenders of American institutions"
pushed through Congress as early as 1798 laws increasing the
residence requirement for citizenship from five to fourteen years,
subjecting alien residents to deportation without accusation, public
trial or privilege of counsel and threatening all hostile critics with
fines and imprisonment. Political debate from Washington's in-
auguration until the close of the Second War with England,
stimulated in part by the confusion in Europe, was replete with
charges and epithets having a peculiarly nativist character — Tiptoe

Some Beginnings of Nativism

traitors, Tories, Gallomaniacs, Jacobins, Wild Irish, French
System-mongers: apostles of anarchy and atheism. One recalls
Josiah Quincy's taunting remark that Madison's cabinet was
"composed, to all efficient purposes, of two Virginians and a
foreigner." Indeed, the number and vocabulary of those who
might well be called nativists was already large even before the
threat of the Holy Alliance to "the American system" stimulated
the growth of both.

While there have been groups of considerable cultural homo-
geneity within our population, it is obvious that much diversity
has always existed among Americans ever since the formative
years of the Republic. It is evident, too, that the process of
adjustment among the different cultural groups has been con-
tinuous. There have been times, however, when that process
has been characterized by the activities of large and well organized
nativist movements. In every case these movements have been
coincident with, or have immediately followed, periods of rapid
immigration. People have then been most conscious of the
difficulties of adjustment and the status quo and reactionary
groups — those most unwilling to see any change from the tra-
ditional cultural pattern — have been aroused to action.

A review of the census statistics for the first half of the nine-
teenth century reveals two things of importance in this connection.
In 1830 there were in the United States, liberally estimated, but
400,000 foreign-born out of a total population of 13,000,000.'
By contrast, there came to this country between 1830 and 1850
nearly 2,500,000 immigrants.^ Among them were many English,
Welsh and Scotch with whom little cultural adjustment was
necessary. More disturbing to the native Americans^ were the
CathoHc Irish.^' Wearied of their pitiful struggle as tenant
farmers, violently hostile to everything English bred of years of
exploitation and loyal followers of their priesthood, they were
distinguished partly by their extreme poverty but chiefly by their
cohesion and clannishness. They preferred to work together and
to live in their own communities. This group cohesion also
characterized their political activities. Voting as a bloc they
frequently exhibited strength and astuteness enough to secure
political appointments and contracts and, in some places, to secure
the control of ward politics. Moreover, they often organized

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

their own militia companies and became active competitors for a
share of the public funds to maintain their Catholic parochial
schools.

Samuel F. B. Morse, taking time from his scientific and artistic
work in 1834, was typical of the nativists who rallied "Americans"
against this alien group. In a series of open letters written under
the pseudonym "Brutus" which had wide circulation, he de-
nounced the Catholics generally as politically dangerous.

"We say firmly to the Popish Bishops and Priests among
us, give us your declaration of your relation to our civil
government. Renounce your foreign allegiance to a Foreign
Sovereign. Let us have your avowal in an official manifesto,
that the Democratic Government under which you here live,
delights you best. . . . Americans demand it."*

To him the rigorous naturalization law of 1798, later repealed,
was a half-way measure. He wanted legislation providing that
"no foreigner who may come into this country . . . shall ever
be allowed to exercise the elective franchise."^

Local action resulted from the growing religious agitation
whipped up by press and pulpit. In Charlestown, Massachusetts,
an Ursuline convent was burned. In New York City a "Carroll
Hall" ticket was opposed by an "American Protestant Union"
over the question of sectarian schools, an issue which kept the
nativist movement alive and resulted, in 1843, in the organization
of the American Republican Party.

Although local in most of its aims, pledging its candidates to
repeal the New York School law which had given the Catholics
control of the public schools in some wards, the American Re-
publican Party declared in favor of twenty-one years residence
for voting and the enforcement of complete separation of religion
and politics. In support of this last policy, it claimed that "Papal
power is directly opposed in its end and aim to a republican form
of government."''

By 1844, nativism had taken on national proportions, spreading
from New York and Pennsylvania into Connecticut, Massachu-
setts, Maryland, Delaware, and South Carolina. Politically organ-
ized as the Native American Party, it held its first national con-
vention in Philadelphia in 1845 with fourteen states represented-''

Some Beginnings of Nativism

The "Declaration"® of the convention contained a lurid descrip-
tion of the United States "rapidly becoming the lazar-house and
penal colony of Europe ;" of immigrants "sent to work a revolu-
tion from republican freedom to the divine right of monarchs ;"
of an imperium in imperio, "a body uninformed and vicious,
foreign in feeling, prejudice, and manner, yet armed with a vast
and often controlling influence over the policy of a nation whose
benevolence it abuses and whose kindness it habitually insults."
Nor did the nativists of this time have much hope that an environ-
ment of political freedom would Americanize the newcomers.

"We hold that with few exceptions no man educated under
one system of government can ever become thoroughly im-
bued with the essence and spirit of another system essentially
different in character."

"That no man can eradicate, entirely, the prejudices and
attachments associated with the land of his birth, so as to
become a perfectly safe depository for political trust, in any
other country."*

The nativist movement was not confined exclusively to the sea-
board cities or states. Wherever the immigrant was present in
sufficient numbers to make adjustment with the native population
difficult the movement grew apace. There was a strong nativist
group in Cincinnati where, by 1840, half of the voting population
were of foreign birth. Further west, St. Louis and New Orleans
were greatly affected and many smaller communities came under
the control of the Native Americans.

In Pennsylvania, Philadelphia was a center of the movement.
In 1844 it suffered a veritable warfare between the nativists and
the Irish over the use of the Protestant version of the Bible in
the public schools. There was much bloodshed and destruction
of property and it was necessary to call out the militia three times
to stop the rioting."

Similar rioting occurred in many places giving the movement
an unsavory reputation and alienating many of its more conserva-
tive members. The Democratic Party had denounced the nativists
as bigots from the very beginning of the movement and the Whigs
turned against them in 1844 blaming their activities for the de-
feat of Henry Clay, the Whig candidate for President in that
year. By 1847, the local Native American organizations had

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

largely lost their power with the exception of the one in Phila-
delphia.^-'

The very year which marked the disorganization of the
American Republican Associations, however, witnessed the Irish
famine and the beginning of another great migration from the
Emerald Isle. Only about half a million had come in the decade
of the thirties. In the forties the total was over one and a half
millions and in the fifties 2,707,620 entered the country.^^* In
the year 1850 the natives of Ireland constituted 43.04 per cent of
the alien population. Moreover, immigration was further swollen
by Gennans who, dissatisfied with the failure of the 1848 revolu-
tionary movements, came in large numbers exceeding, after 1852,
the Irish.

Corresponding to the growth of the foreign population was that
of the Catholic Church. In 1830 there were but 230 Catholic
churches and 232 priests in the United States and the Catholic
population was estimated by their own statisticians at half a
million. By 1854 these numbers had grown to 1,712 churches,
746 other stations, 1,574 priests and over a million and a half
total Catholic population.^*

It is not surprising, therefore, that there was a revival of
nativism during the decade of the 1850's. A new turn was given
to the movement by the adoption of the methods of the numerous
secret societies that had sprung up in part imitation of the Masons,
Odd Fellows, Red Men and the like. The nativist secret society
destined to be the most successful was the Order of the Star
Spangled Banner, formed in 1850 with a poHcy "to influence
local politics by concerted action of its members in favor of
nominees selected from the tickets of the political parties (who
were) protestant and American-born."^'*

Using secret rituals, grips, signs, degrees, meetings and play-
ing upon the curiosity as well as the nativistic sentiments of
the people, this Order of the Star Spangled Banner grew until
in 1855 it had State Councils in thirty-two states and a claimed
membership of a million and half voters."

Under the popular name of Know Nothing Party, the Order
repeated the same charges against the foreigners and Catholics
and made the same demands for reform as had the nativists of

Some Beginnings of Nativism 7

the 1830's and 1840's. The pubUshed declaration of principles
prepared by President Barker of the Order included the following:

"Americans shall rule America. .

No sectarian influence in our legislation or m the admmis-
tration of American laws.

Hostility to the assumptions of the Pope, through the
Bishops, Priests, and Prelates of the Roman Catholic Church
here in a Republic sanctified by Protestant blood.

Thorough reform in the Naturalization laws.

Free and liberal educational institutions for all sects and
classes with the Bible, God's Holy Word, as a universal
textbook.""

The primary elections of 1854 revealed the growing strength of
the Know Nothings. Secretly choosing their own candidates, they
elected persons not known to be running for the offices. Two
such surprise candidates were elected in Lancaster^* and one in
Allegheny, Pennsylvania.^" In Philadelphia the Know Nothing
candidates' for Mayor, Solicitor, Comptroller, and for a majority
of the City Council were successful. In the fall elections the
Know Nothings elected practically all their candidates to the
legislature as well as to every other state office in Massachusetts.'"
In New York they polled over one-fourth of the total vote cast."
In Pennsylvania as a whole the Know Nothing vote was two-
fifths of the total. In Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Blair,
Clarion, Clearfield, Crawford, Dauphin, Huntingdon, Lancaster,
Lebanon, Mifflin and Perry Counties the Know Nothings polled a
majority of the votes.-^

But along with the increasing membership in 1855 and 1856
grew internal dissention. The secrecy which had been character-
istic of the movement was now criticized from within as well as
from without the Party. The Oath of Admission was believed
by some to be too severe. The declaration against "the aggressive
policy and corrupting tendencies of the Roman Catholic Church"
was criticized as too harsh by the Maryland delegates who pro-
posed a milder substitute. The result of this dissatisfaction was
the adoption in 1856 of a conciliatory policy by the National
Council of the Party which sanctioned "the reform of state Know
Nothing constitutions" and suggested the substitution of a "pledge
of honor" for the existing oath of admission. The Council like-
wise advocated "free and open discussion of political principles."

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

This retreat from robust nativism was occasioned by the fact
that many people had joined the Party more out of disgust with
the Whig and Democratic parties than because of fundamental
nativist beliefs. The chief cause of factional discord within the
Party which resulted in its decline was, however, not differences
of opinion regarding secrecy, oaths or any of the truly nativist
principles. It was the question of "bleeding Kansas" that de-
stroyed the Know Nothing Party. In its national convention of
1856, the anti-slavery men came prepared to bolt. When their
resolution was voted down providing that no candidate be nomi-
nated who favored slavery north of 36 degrees 30 minutes, they
withdrew from the organization. The remainder of the delegates,
after much wrangling, finally adopted the squatter sovereignty
principle which the Douglas Democrats claimed as their private
property. This lost for the Know Nothings their distinctiveness
on the chief issue of the time and sealed their doom as a national
political organization.

Locally they retained their effectiveness for some time but the
chief constructive legislation they secured in line with their na-
tivist principles was the enactment of literacy tests for voting in
Connecticut and Massachusetts and in the latter state a law re-
quiring "daily reading in the public schools of some portion of
the Bible in the common English version." ^*

The Civil War not only diverted attention from nativism but
greatly curtailed immigration. After peace was made the immi-
grant tide swelled rapidly, stimulated by the possibility of securing
free land under the Homestead Act. Between 1866 and 1873,
over 2,725,000 foreigners arrived.^* When hard times and in-
creased economic competition came with the panic of 1873, nativist
feeling against the foreigner revived. Although no separate
nativist party appeared, it is significant that the platforms of both
Republican and Democratic parties contained nativist planks in
1876. The Republican Party even recommended a constitutional
amendment preventing the use of public funds or property in
support of sectarian schools.'*''

It was not until the decade of the 1890's, however, that the
nativists again combined into an organization of national impor-
tance, named by its founder, Henry F. Bowers, the American
Protective Association. Begun in Clinton, Iowa, in 1887, it had

Some Beginnings of Nativism 9

spread by 1893 into twenty states and had a membership of over
70 000 Nativism had spread westward with the advancmg popu-
lation The trans-Allegheny cities-Rochester, Toledo, Detroit,
Des Moines, Saginaw, Omaha-became important centers of the
new movement. The country districts of the midwest were also
affected by this "new Know-Nothingism." The interest of the
rural areas may be explained in part by the fact that the immi-
grants who came during the decade of the 1880's in larger num-
bers than any other nationality were Germans who acquired farms
and populated the country side.-»

Like the older nativist organizations, the American Protective
Association found the cultural item to which it most openly ob-
jected a religious one. A large percentage of the newcomers from
Germany were Catholics while in the growing mid-western in-
dustrial cities, those Germans had been supplemented by Catholics
from Austria, Italy and Ireland.=« The growth of the Catholic
Church was rapid. Indeed, it practically doubled m the last
quarter of the nineteenth century. Instead of seven archbishops
as in 1860, there were 78. The number of Catholic Churches was
12 293 as compared with 2,385 in 1860, while the Catholic popula-
tion grew from 3,177,140 to 7,474,850 dyring the same period.^'"
The mid-west was not without its share of this growth. To have
such large numbers of non-Protestant people in their midst was
a new experience for the A.P.A. belt and its reaction was quite
like that of the seacoast cities during the forties and fifties.

Then too, the nativists were envious of the growing industrial
and professional strength of the Catholics who became doctors,
lawyers, teachers and editors as well as day laborers. In the great
railway' and commercial corporations they were filling responsible
positions and officering trade unions along with men of the
Protestant faith. The latter, believing themselves to these posi-
tions born, found in the A.P.A. an organization through which
they might compete more successfully with the Catholics and again
"relegate them to the position of hewers of wood and drawers of
water, their proper place."

This jealousy of their Catholic competitors was hardly some-
thing of which the nativists could be very proud nor could it
be used directly in their campaigns for membership. They turned,
therefore, to the old arguments : the Catholics were dangerous as

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

citizens ; they were more dangerous as holders of public ofifice
since their action was always directed, not for the good of all, but
for the good of their own ecclesiastical body; they were mere
servants of a foreign potentate whose sympathies were anti-
republican.

Certain occurrences added strength to their claims. A Papal
delegation headed by Msgr. Satolli came to Washington. The
Omaha American, commenting on the coming of this "American
Pope," expressed the nativist sentiment :

"Why should the country throw open its gates to a pre-
tender, a blasphemer, a politico-ecclesiastical fraud, who sails
under the sounding title of vice-regent of God ? . . . Awake
Americans, the liberties and institutions of this country are
in danger."

Many Catholics had also opposed the Edwards compulsory
school law in Illinois, and the somewhat similar Bennett law of
Wisconsin. The Catholic Council of Baltimore charged every
pastor to "build and maintain a distinctly Catholic school in his
parish as a remedy against the colorless instruction offered in the
public schools where religious training is, as a rule, excluded."
The Faribault Plan was proposed in Minnesota whereby the paro-
chial schools would be maintained and administered by the public
school authorities with permission given to the Catholics to use
the schools for religious instruction after school hours.** Catholic
groups about the same time advocated state aid for parochial
schools in Maryland and New York.""^ All this appeared to the
nativists a well laid "Jesuit plot" to destroy the American "non-
sectarian" public school system.

Organizers of the American Protective Association who were
responsible for increasing the membership, made deliberate efforts
to play upon the fears and credulity of the Protestant people, an
effort which met with success particularly in the rural areas.
They spread ill founded rumors regarding Catholic military or-
ganizations which practiced in secret and hid their arms in
churches.^" They concocted tales of the immorality to be found
in convents and monasteries — "hatching houses of infamy." They
hired speakers who posed as "escaped" nuns and ex -priests.*^ A
bombastic press, of which the A.P.A. Magazine was typical,

Some Beginnings of Nativism H

grew up in support of the movement and printed quantities of
"disclosures." The Patriotic American, a weekly organ of the
A P A published in Detroit, created a sensation by printing a
spurious document ascribed to Leo XIII in which American
Catholic citizens were absolved from their allegiance to the Umted
States government. This forgery went on to state that "on or
about the feast of Ignatius Loyola, in the year of our Lord, 189^,
it will be the duty of all the faithful to exterminate all heretics
found within the jurisdiction of the United States of America^

The effect of this forgery, which was copied by the A.P.A.
papers throughout the country, has been described by Elbert
Hubbard :

"I was visiting an old farmer friend in Illinois, and very
naturally the talk was of the great fair. Was he going? Not
he— he dared not leave his house a single day ; did I not know
that the Catholics had been ordered by the Pope to burn the
barns and houses of all heretics? It sounded like a joke but
I saw the grey eyes of this old man flash and I knew he
was terribly in earnest. With trembling hands he showed
me the Pope's encyclical printed in a newspaper which had
a deep border of awful black . . . I.was taken to the wo
clergymen in the village, a Presbyterian and a Methodist,
both were full of fear and hate toward the Catholics . . .
They w^ere sure that the order to kill and burn had gone

^^''And so in many towns and villages as I journeyed; I
found this quaking fear. In many places men were arming
themselves with Winchester rifles; the A.P.A. lodges were
rapidly initiating new members and lurid literature which was
being vomited forth from presses in Louisville, Chicago,
Omaha, and Kansas City was being sent broadcast.

Besides the credulous who swallowed wholesale such forgeries
as the above and the stories peddled from place to place by ex-
priests, there was another group whose interest in the A.P.A.
was more calculating. The Know Nothing movement, as we have
seen had in the beginning merely indorsed candidates who were
mosi favorable to nativist principles. Later, it placed its own
ticket in the field. The American Protective Association, on the
other hand, adopted the shorter way to success by capturing out-
right in many regions the machinery of the Republican Party.
The Democratic administration had the misfortune to be held re-

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

sponsible in the popular mind for the hard times and business
depression in the summer of 1893 and the A.P.A.-ists, where they
had control of the Republican machinery, were carried to victory
on the wave of Democratic reaction that swept over the country.
Politicians and petty office seekers were aware of the strategic
position held by the A.P.A. and were quite willing to forego any
deterring scruples in order to partake of the political plums which
membership in the A.P.A. offered. "Hundreds of new members,"
writes a leading historian of the movement,*" "joined the A.P.A.
from October 1893 to November 1894, who cared little for its
anti-Catholic program. They were after the loaves and fishes of
city and county office and the control or possession of the local
party machinery."

Another factor which had some bearing upon the growth of
the A.P.A. movement was the encouragement given the move-
ment by those who, opposed to the organization of labor unions,
saw in it a means to divide the workers and undermine their
unions. This, rather than any hatred of Catholicism, accounts
for the willingness of some of the large industrial and transporta-
tion companies to encourage the religious fanaticism of the
A.P.A."

The movement had several significant results. Politically the
affiliation of the A.P.A. with the Republican Party in 1892 was
important. The Catholic vote was largely given to the Democrats
with the resuh that the strong Republican states of Illinois and
Wisconsin returned majorities for Cleveland and helped secure
his election. It is clear, also, that the opposition which the A.P.A.
directed against Catholic interference with the public schools
helped to unify Protestant opinion in support of "non-sectarian"
schools and the complete separation of Church and State. It is
doubtful, however, whether the public school system was strength-
ened by the movement, for many Catholics who had loyally sup-
ported public schools came to regard them as Protestant schools
and transferred their support to the parochial schools maintained
by the Catholic Church.*-

Like the nativist movements which preceded it, the career of
the A.P.A. was meteoric, disappearing as rapidly as it had risen.
Without doubt it was successful from the standpoint of local
politicians and office seekers. But when, in its political capacity,

Some Beginnings of Nativism

it made the bad mistake of refusing to indorse the candidacy of
McKinley in the election of 1896, it relegated itself to a mere
faction of the Republican Party and its political hangers-on began
to leave it like rats from a falling house. Although the A.P.A.
preserved its national organization up to 1900, its history as a
factor of political importance might be said to have ceased in 1896.

Based largely upon emotion, the movement was difficult to
maintain. In spite of fears, barns were not burned nor were
"heretics" slaughtered. The more sober elements among the
Protestant groups were hostile to its methods, if not altogether
opposed to its principles. Fictitious "escaped nuns" were even-
tually exposed as frauds, the "official" press disappeared from
want of subscribers, and the movement collapsed.

References

T W Brownwell: History of Immigration to the United States ... from 1819 to
1855. ' (N. Y. 1856) p. 61.
I' S^'c T^hnton-^History of Emigration from the United Kingdom to North America.
^' i7^hoi7 (London 1913) PP 39-67, 80-81, 158-159, 176-196. . . . u

4 Vhes'e eturs were reprin ed u the title of "Foreign Conspiracy Agamst the

liberties of the United^tates." (N. Y. 1855) See p. 110 et seq.
5. Ibid. p. 149. , ,

-[""Hlee' "^'X'^^i^U^^Ind'p'ogres 'of -the American Party" (Phila. 1835) p. 229.
The"e states were Pennsylvania, Massachusetts. New York. New Jersey, Delaware.
Kentucky! Ohio. Missouri, Mississippi. Georgia, New Hampshire, Vermont. Indiana,
and North Carolina.
8. Lee: op. cit. 231-243.

10. Compare J. B. McMaster: The Riotous Career of the Know Nothings. Forum, vol.

11. T.' R.' Whitn'eyf'befense of the American Policy, (N. Y. 1856) p. 250 et seq.

n icinnedy' LCG.: Abstract of the 8th Census of the U. S.. pp. 13 14.

U. Metropolitan Catholic Almanac and Laity's Directory, I860 P- 266.

15 L D Scisco: Political Nativism in New York State, (N. Y 1901) p. 65.

16. T. C. Smith: Parties and Slavery. (N. Y. 1906) pp. 118-119.

17. L. D. Scisco; op. cit. p. 143.

18 Philadelphia North American, May 13. 1854.

20: a H^^HayJes: " "a Kno'w Nothinl'tegislature in Massachusetts. American Historical

Association Reports, vol. i. p. 178.
22: New°Vork'Tim;s,^'pl?ember 21, 1854, p. 6. The Pennsylvania Telegraph, Feb. 24,

23 Th'e^fatform oV'the'^K^ow Nothfng' Party, 1855 (New York Public Library)
24. The Platform of the Know Nothing Party, 1856 (New York Public Library)

26-. Li^tica'lTbXact^'o/the United states, 1878. (Washington, 1879) PP. 132, 133.

27 J. M. Mecklin: The Ku Klux Klan (N. Y. 1924) p. 131. q.,^;,Hr,l

28 The number of Germans to come during the decade was 1,452,962. Statistical
Abstract of the U. S., 1891. (Washington, 1892) p. 218.

29. Srltion during th^ 1880's ; Austrians, 226 020 ; Italians 307,095; Irish. 655.J81.
Statistical Abstract of the U. S., 1890, (Washington. 1891) p. 207.

30. World Almanac. 1899. PP. 318, 320.

51. J. H. Desmond: The A. P. A. Movement (Washington, 1912) p. 10.

33: kuen!^'c^i.:^Thi^'crthoUcs^and^the Public Schools, Educational Review. Decem-
ber, 1892.

14 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

Refer gnces

34. Mooney, J. A.; The Catholic Controversy about Education. Educational Review
March 1892.

35. Winston, E. M.: Threatening Conflict with Romanism, Forum, June, 1894, p. 428 ff

36. Hubbard, Elbert: A New Defense. Arena, vol. x, p. 79 et seq. June, 1894.

37. Desmond; op. cit. Chapter vi.

38. Patriotic American, April 8, 1893.

39. Hubbard, Elbert: op. cit. p. 76.

40. Desmond: op. cit. pp. 28, 32.

41. Spaulding, J. L.: North American Review, vol. 159, p. 278 et seq.

42. Compare Desmond: op. cit. p. 40.

CHAPTER 2
The Revival of the Ku Klux Klan

"Tn the lovers of Law and Order, Peace and Justice

Kinea .he excesses o£ P™pa,.o« and h,

;':t^^rv:;;:;t"Ze .-e .ea.es
iseuig cx > u;AAprt from view, strong roots

SfeleTiZwt-i r .orr L.ea .0 appea. wHen

-1:::'^:^:^^^ - ^ o: ......

legislation of 1903 and iW/. pre-requisites.
World War did fortune provide the otlier two i h
The firsTof these was the obliteration of the memory of the
A P A s excesses The second was a vague but widespread feel-
ing of 'fear enhanced by the pinch of economic want.

I is true that prior to the World War some groups -^^^
fearful amon- which was the newly estabhshed (1911) Guardians
of Libertv TlTe First American Catholic Missionary Congress,

?j;tr%tr; a.tS3J::^J u ..... a

289981

The Ku, Klux Klak i>; Pennsylvania

circulation, in 1914, of over 1,400,000. Stili there was no wide-
spread revival of organized nativism in consequence. The years
of relative agricultural prosperity after 1900 had a deadly effect
upon a possible nativist revival in the A.P.A. belt and undoubtedly
delayed it.

Largely by chance, the revival of nativism began in the South
where a movement at first primarily concerned with "white su-
premacy" was gradually broadened out to include all the tenets
of the older nativist movements and some new ones as well.(_Jts
founder was William Joseph Simmons of Atlanta, Georgia. The
inspiration for his enterprise had come from his boyhood days
when his most pleasant activity had been to listen to or read of
the exploits of the Ku Klux Klan and to reenact these in mimic
drama. "From a child in dresses," explained Simmons, "I can
remember how old Aunt Viney, my black mammy, used to pacify
us children late in the evening by telling us about the Kuklux."
When about twenty years old he found a volume on the Klan
which especially thrilled him. Laying the book aside he had a
vision. "On horseback in their white robes they rode across
the wall in front of me. ... As the picture faded out, I got
down on my knees and swore that I would found a fraternal
organization which would be a memorial to the Kuklux Klan."

There is no evidence, however, except what appears plainly
apocryphal, to show that Mr. Simmons, when he and a few of
his friends applied for a charter for a "patriotic, military, benevo-
lent, ritualistic, social and fraternal order," intended to found a
nationwide revival of APA-ism or a new Know Nothing move-
ment. Many writers have speculated upon Mr. Simmons' original
purpose in establishing the Order. Ward Greene, an Atlanta
Journal reporter, undoubtedly belittled the imagination of Sim-
mons when he concluded, after a survey of its origin, that
"prohibition made the Ku Klux Klan" which was just "a new
fraternal order with locker club trimmings." ^ On the other hand,
the dreams credited to Simmons of a great American fraternity
that knew no Mason's and Dixon's Line undoubtedly err in the
opposite direction.

For the success of the new enterprise, its birthplace, the city
of Atlanta, was important. It had been the seat of publication,
during the pre-war years, of a bitterly anti-Catholic journal,

The Revival of the Ku Klux Klan

The Jeffersonian. Then, like the smaller Pennsylvania cities
of York and Lancaster, Atlanta, Georgia, is a city of "joiners."
Simmons himself held membership in two orders, the Masons
and the Knights of Pythias, at the time he was establishing his

Simmons had personal characteristics which aided him in his
enterprise. An impressive person, he stood over six feet tall,
had a smooth shaven face, clear eyes, and a powerful voice that
could hold for hours the attention of an average audience. He
had served as circuit rider in the Methodist Episcopal Church
for some years, later became professor of History at Lanier Uni-
versity, was a veteran of the Spanish-American War, although
his title of Colonel was a complimentary one, and, as one com-
mentator expressed it, he was "as full of sentiment as a plum is
full of juice." * One essential characteristic he lacked. He had
little organizing ability and the movement might have languished
or remained of purely local significance if other factors had not
strengthened it. /

The name of the Order was one of these. As all students of
society are aware, new institutions gain advantage if they can be
robed in garments of worthy tradition or resurrected like the
Deuteronomic Code from the sacred confines of the temple of
precedent. In choosing his charter members, Simmons included
two men who had been members of the original Klan, Dr. George-
DrCouch and Rev. J. F. V. Saul, In order to add prestige to
the "T^vived Klan and to justify "his claini that the Order was^
authentic. The regalia and nomenclature, which Simmons took
from the earlier organization, served the same purpose. To be
sure, one had to have a poor memory of history or else the
prevalent race and color prejudice of the South to accept as valid
the "sublime lineage" of Simmons' Klan. As a southern frater-
nity, however, this was an acceptable "talking point."

The principles of the new Order were the accepted fundamentals
of Southern thought. Simmons was addressing his own South
when he wrote:

"The Knights of the Ku Klux Klan is a purely patriotic
fraternal organization designed to memorialize the Klan of
the Reconstruction period and to perpetuate the principles
for which it stood. ... It stands for the preservation

own.

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

of American ideals and institutions, the protection of the
home, the chastity of womanhood, the maintenance of the
bloodbought rights and liberties of the Anglo-Saxon race
. . . The Ku Klux Klan stands unreservedly and un-
ashamedly for white supremacy in America . . . "

Any reader of the earlier statements of Mr. Simmons is apt
to remark, "Well, what of it!" The great mass of southern
Whites had for years held such sentiments. "White supremacy"
and "the chastity of womanhood" were certainly safe enough for
anyone to support but it is difficult to conceive that they needed
special preachment in Atlanta in 1915 or 1916. Racial antagonism
had not increased nor were there any events which could lead
one to foresee the serious riots which later did occur in Chicago
and elsewhere. There was loud talk by foreign language groups
in justification of the action of their respective countries in the
World War but foreign conspiracy had not raised its ugly head
to endanger the native stock in Atlanta. One is led to conclude
that Simmons himself was not especially interested in whipping
negroes or tarring and feathering wicked whites or aliens. He
was enamoured of the fraternal and the spectacular features of
the organization. The thought of being clad in a mysterious garb
and of riding a big horse through the streets of Atlanta possessed
and fascinated him.

For a period of four years, however, the growth of the Order
was almost negligible. Its rapid expansion dates from 1920 when
Simmons hired the "Southern Publicity Association" to bring the
Order to the attention of the public. This "Association" consisted
of two people, one Edward Young Clarke and a Mrs. Elizabeth
(Bessie) Tyler. Clarke had attained some prestige as a "physi-
cian for sick towns." At one time he had been employed to
administer a Har\^est Home Festival in Atlanta. It was there
that the Association was organized. As Mrs. Tyler tells the
story:

"I was interested in hygiene work for babies, sort of better
babies movement. I had taken enough of a medical course
to fit myself for the work of visiting among the tenements
and advising mothers about their babies, and in the Harvest
Home Festival we had a "Better Babies' Parade, of which I
had charge. It was through this that I met Mr. Qarke.

The Revival of the Ku Klux Klan 19

"After we had talked over many business enterprises we
formed the Southern Publicity Association^ I was associated
with the Y W C. A. I financed the Southern Publicity
Association and stayed in the office, and Mr Clarke was field
representative, planning and working out publicity campaigns

of one sort and another. ^ , o- ^ ^v,^ ir„

"We came in contact with Col. Simmons and the Ku
Klux Klan through the fact that my son-in-law joined it
We found Col. Simmons was having a hard time to get
along He couldn't pay his rent. His receipts were not
sufficient to take care of his personal needs. He was a min-
ister and a clean living man, and he was heart and soul tor
the success of his Ku Klux Klan. After we had investigated
it from every angle, we decided to go into it with Co . Sim-
mons and give it the impetus that it could get best from

^"""H 'was my idea that we would get a little local publicity
throughout the South or through our section and that^ the
order would grow by degrees. But the minute we said Ku
Klux" editors from all over the United States began literally
pressing us for publicity." ®

As Mrs. Tyler suggests, the pressure for publicity was not
altogether due to the skill of either member of the Southern
Publicity Association. The tabloid press and the rotogravure
editors of the regular press had a large share in it. Mysterious
marchers in white robes and peaked hoods were a godsend to them.

An enterprising newspaper photographer in Atlanta was the
first to discover the photographic possibilities of the new move-
ment. Ward Greene in his Notes for a History of the Klan
has graphically described the incident as follows :

"Matty tried to get Simmons and Clarke to pose. They
- refused. A secret order, was it? No faces-just cowls and
robes and crosses? He had seen "The Birth of a Nation
and knew his stuff. Off he went, rigged up his umforms,
hired twenty men, lit a couple of crosses, and turned on the
Graflex. The pictures sold like wildfire. . . • The New
York Times played them up in its rotogravure section. No
dirty digs from any quarter. . . . (And since Matty be-
lieved in hiring the cheapest labor possible) the first pictures
of the Klan to be published in America were posed by twenty
sons of Ham at two bits a man." ^

E Y Clarke and Mrs. Tyler were, of course, directly respon-
sible for the work of promotion. The contract which Simmons

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

made with them was liberal. It was a commission arrangement.
Of each ten dollar "donation" which was made as a prerequisite
to membership, they retained eight. After expenses were paid,
they anticipated a tidy remainder as their personal remuneration.
It was soon learned that to be effective, the appeal for members
had to be fitted to each particular locality and that the mere
rehearsal of the principles of the Order was not sufficient. A
program of action was more appealing and had to be provided.
As a consequence of his experience Clarke selected his helpers
according to their ability to turn the bellows upon smouldering
fires of racial and religious hatreds and those who encouraged
night-riding and a free-handed mob justice were winked at.

The movement grew and violence increased with it. In Texas,
Georgia and Louisiana, Klan lawlessness became serious and it
was prevalent in other Southern States. In a few instances the
Klan used pressure upon its own members to make them behave.
More frequently, and with much more gusto, it gave its attention
to outsiders who had not kept the moral code generally held by
the Klan elements of the community. If the offense had been
committed by a Catholic, an alien or a Jew, the promptest attention
was usually given to it. One investigator who made an extended
study of the Klan during its early years, reported that while its
activities varied considerably from place to place, in general "boot-
leggers seem to be the favorite objects of attack. Dope peddlers
come in for attention, grafting officials are taken care of, places
of amusement regulated, unfair business dealing punished . . .
But there is also much eflfort put into regulating personal con-
duct . . . men who maintained illicit relations with women, who
failed to support their families, drank or gambled too heavily, or
in general 'acted scandalously.' " «

The Literary Digest reported "forty-three tar and feather par-
ties . . . held in Texas" during the six months prior to August
1921, the victim in one instance being a white woman. "In an-
other case the initials KKK were branded on the forehead of a
negro bellboy. In Missouri a sixty-year-old farmer was whipt
by a mob and in Florida an archdeacon of the English Episcopal
Church was both whipt and tarred and feathered." Charles P.
Sweeney, prominent in one of the earliest newspaper investiga-
tions of the Klan, reported that "The law is flouted ... A

The Revival of the Ku Klux Klan

mayor in Columbus, Georgia, who refuses to remove a city official
who has proved efficient and capable finds his home dynamited;
the city manager, 'a blue-bellied Yankee,' is driven from the city.
Members of a board of education in Atlanta, Georgia, demurring
at voting for a resolution to dismiss all Catholics employed as
public school teachers, receive letters threatening their lives."

The Klan did not make a direct appeal to the criminal element
to join it but, on the other hand, little effort was made by most
of the organizers to keep the illiterate and the hoodlum elements
out of its membership. There were undoubtedly groups not
affiliated with the Klan who took advantage of the Klan's secrecy
and garb to discredit the Order or to do a little "reforming" on
their own account. It is impossible to estimate what percentage
of the violence credited to the Klan was actually committed with
the official approval of the Order. Nevertheless, public opinion
as expressed in the secular and religious press of the country
began to turn hostile to the movement in the autumn of 1921.

The Houston (Texas) Chronicle was one of the first news-
papers to criticize unsparingly the Klan. One angle of its at-
tacks appears in the following quotation:

"It matters not who can get into your organization or who
is kept out; any group of men can ape your disguise, your
methods and your practices. If outrages occur for which you
are not accountable — and they will — you have no way of
clearing yourselves, except by throwing off your disguise and
invoking the publicity you have sought to deny. Your role
of masked violence, of purification by stealth, of reforni by
terrorism is an impossible one. Your position is_ such that
you must accept responsibility for every offense which smacks
of disguised tyranny." "

Beginning with September, 1921, the general press attack on
the movement grew measurably. Led by the New York World,
some twenty newspapers ran a series of syndicated articles which
exposed to the general public not only the methods and violence
of the Klan but the mysteries of its ritual and secret lore, the
jargon of its vocabulary and the oath which bound its members.
The style of the articles revealed the evident intent of their authors
and publishers to hold the Klan up for ridicule and, if possible,
to destroy it with laughter. The weekly press followed, printing

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

articles under such titles as "Applied Violence," "A Nightgown
Tyranny," "Imperial Lawlessless" and the like. Typical of these
was the sarcastic essay entitled "The Ku Klux Klan: The Soul
of Chivalry," in which the Klan was denounced as "a child con-
ceived in the tradition of a lawless past, and brought forth in the
extravagant obscurantism of present day prejudice."

Among the religious papers which took up the cudgels against
the Klan's methods was the undenominational Christian Work
(N. Y.) which wrote: "To have a group of men abroad
in America whose purpose it is to stir up prejudice of any kind
is not only Un-Christian, but contrary to well-estabHshed Amer-
ican Principles."'^ The Atlanta Wesleyan Christian Ad-
vocate, speaking for the southern leaders of the Methodist

/ Episcopal Church, declared : "The Ku Klux Klan is not so much
\i condemned by any proposed purpose, as by the tragical results
in the multiplication all over the country of acts of masked mob
violence for which the Order is directly or indirectly respon-
sible."^* The Presbyterian Advance condemned the Order
for secrecy which offered "a temptation too strong to be resisted
to take the law into its own hands. "^^ The Reformed Church
Messenger struck the same note of condemnation.

Congress was stimulated to action by this press criticism and
the Rules Committee of the House of Representatives conducted
an investigation which was replete with charges of violence and
illegality against the Klan and hearty denials of the same by the
Klan officials. Col. Simmons was much distressed to find the

/ child of his dreams so maligned. He had had no intention of
raising up an Order so undisciplined. He did not believe that
Klansmen had actually committed the crimes charged against
them, but if such was actually the case, they had violated the
principles of the Order.^*

This turn of events was not anticipated by the leaders of the
movement. The credit for weathering the tempest goes in large
measure to Mrs. Tyler. E. Y. Clarke was admittedly frightened.
In August of 1921 when it appeared that a storm was about to
break, he strengthened his secret service and protective personnel
by the employment of Fred L. Savage who had had experience
running a private detective agency in New York City and had
participated in breaking up the longshoreman's strike there in

The Revival of the Ku Klux Klan

1920.^^ He was given the title of Chief of Investigation, and
he or his agents accompanied Clarke everywhere he went to afford
him protection. The exposure of the Klan by the New York
World terrified Clarke, and when it appeared that Congress
was actually going to conduct an investigation, he felt that it
would be safer for him outside the Order, so he wrote his resigna-
tion and gave it to the press. When the reporters immediatly
called upon Mrs. Tyler to find out whether the other member of
the Southern Publicity Association had any intention of abandon-
ing the Order, she learned of Clarke's action for the first time.
Furious, she denounced him as "weak-kneed," and stated her in-
tention to stay with the organization. She undoubtedly sensed
the situation better than Clarke ; knew that exposures were good
publicity and, what is more important, knew that the very fact
that the northern metropolitan Nezv York World spat upon
the Klan would cause a large group in the South, with charac-
teristic stubbornness, to smile upon it— indeed, to embrace it
ecstatically. So powerful a force was she in the Atlanta office that
within forty-eight hours Clarke was persuaded to withdraw his
resignation and stay with the organization, a decision which was
unfortunate in the light of what was to happen to him later.^^
The results of the investigations turned out as Mrs. Tyler had
predicted. The membership of the Klan before Qarke and Tyler
were given charge of promotion was a mere five or six thousand.
From the time they began their work until the eve of the in-
vestigations mentioned above, the membership had increased to
125,000, conservatively estimated." The Klan leaders claimed
more than this, stating that the total was as high as 500,000.
This number is, however, an evident exaggeration which the New
York World repeated, perhaps to add to the importance of its
investigation and to hurry reaction. After the investigations, the
membership grew very rapidly. Klan officials reported gains as
great as 5,000 a day.^« Clarke's profits likewise soared to an
estimated figure of $40,000.00 per month.

Such was the status of the Klan when Pennsylvania became
a factor in its history.

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

References

1. Williams, Michael: The Shadow of the Pope, (N. Y. 1932) p. 112.

2. Lit. Dig., Feb. 5, 1921, p. 42.

3. American Mercury, vol. 5, p. 240, Jan. 1925.

4. Current Opinion, Nov. 1921, vol. 71, p. 562.

5. Forum, Apr. 1921, vol. 65, p. 427 ' .

6. Lit. Dig., Sept. 24, 1921, vol. 70, p. 36.

7. American Mercury, Jan. 1925, vol. 5, p. 242.

8. Stanley Frost, Outlook, vol. 136, p. 262.

9. Lit. Dig., Aug. 27, 1921, vol. 70, p. 12.

10. Nation, July 5, 1922, vol. 115, p. 8.

11. Quoted in the Lit. Dig., Aug. 27, 1921, vol. 70, p. 12.

12. Albert de Silver in the Nation, Sept. 14, 1921, vol. 113, p. 285-ff.

13. Quoted in the Lit. Digest for Oct. 1, 1921, vol. 70, p. 30.

14. Report of hearings before the Rules Committee of the House of Representatives, 67th
Congress, 1st Session (1921).

15. Sworn testimony of D. C. Stephenson presented in Case No. 1897 in Equity, Federal
District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania ; also printed privately under
the title "Behind the White Mask of the Ku Klux Klan;" compare Nation vol. 115
p. 8-ff.

16. Cf. the account by Chas. P. Sweeney: Nation vol. 115, p. 8-10 Jl. 5, 1922.

17. Current Opinion, Nov. 1921, vol. 71, p. 561.

18. Lit. Digest, Sept. 24, 1921, vol. 70, p. 34.

19. Stanley Frost in the Outlook, Dec. 26, 1923, vol. 135, p. 717.

CHAPIER 3
The Klan Moves into Pennsylvania

"The Klan demands of its members support in time,
work, money and sacrifice. "-from The Klan Today

The general press denunciation of the Klan in the autumn of
1921 was a boon to the Klan organizers in Pennsylvania. They
had come into the State earlier in the year with F. W. Atkms in
charge. Offices were set up in Philadelphia and with a staff of
five the business of organizing the State was begun.

Progress was slower than these men had anticipated. They
decided it might go faster if efforts were initiated at several
points so the State was divided at the Susquehanna River and
two of the men. Sam D. Rich and a Mr. Faulkner as assistant,
were sent to the western "province" and located at Pittsburgh.
Here an office was rented in the Jenkins Arcade Building, the
sign "Advertising and Publicity" was printed on the door and
callers were welcomed.^

In neither division of the State was the movement successful
for the first five months. Scarcely enough money was taken in
to pay for office rentals. Rich was obliged to dismiss his helper
in order to conserve funds. The fact that the orgamzers were
not natives of the State, Atkins having come from Atlanta,
Georgia and Rich from Covington, Kentucky, made it more
difficult 'for them to win the confidence of prospective members.
The best plan, they soon discovered, was to sit m their offices
and rely for field organizers upon local men. In the Pittsburgh
district, A. L. Cotton was one of these.

Sam Rich was a good salesman. He was a large, impressive
man and while he possessed little ability to work with crowds or
to make a public address, there are many witnesses who testify
to the fact that few men with whom Rich had a personal inter-
view ever came away without having given him the ten dollars

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

which represented their donation to the cause — more literally,
perhaps, to Mr. Rich's maintenance.

It was so with Mr. Cotton although he had already become
interested in the Klan and, some weeks before Rich's arrival,
had written to the Atlanta office for information concerning it.
Moreover Rich found in Cotton a desirable worker. Not yet
out of his thirties, good humored, able to tell a story with flourish,
built like a football tackle, a good lodge man. Cotton had the
qualifications for which Rich was looking. Besides, Cotton had
never settled down to a single occupation and was quite willing >
to give this new work a trial. A bargain was struck. Cotton
was commissioned a Kleagle (organizer) and sent to Erie for
his apprenticeship training.

Not very successful in securing members, this first venture
was rich in experience. His remuneration was a forty percent
commission on the initiation fees which he collected, but this
was barely sufficient to pay for his food and lodging. Forced at
last to get publicity for himself and his cause, he used methods,
the details of which he refused to divulge, which raised consid-
erable opposition. He was warned to leave town — but not he.
Finally arrested, he served a short jail sentence and was, there-
after, a bona fide martyr for the cause. His success after this
experience was more rapid. Soon he was directing the organi-
zation in several counties and had charge of a staff of workers. ^

The publicity given to the Klan by the newspaper and govern-
mental investigations dispelled the clouds of obscurity which had
hung over the movement in Pennsylvania and became a great
boon to its propagators. The number of Kleagles was rapidly
increased and in many cases they found their work relatively
easy. The names of Joseph Shoemaker, Samuel Frazier and
Lemuel Peebles became more or less familiar in all parts of the
State, while others were well known in more local areas ; John
Davis in Westmoreland and Fayette counties ; Paul Winter in
southeastern Pennsylvania ; Carl Risher in the area centering in
Scranton ; Harry McNeel in Armstrong and Cameron counties,
to mention but a few. ;,

In the western provinces of the realm, the movement spread
rapidly up the Allegheny River and southward through the coal
and steel towns in the Monongehela and Youghiogheny valleys.

The Klan Moves Into Pennsylvania 27

Especmliy strong units were organized in Pittsburgh New Ken-
sington, Homestead, Mt. Pleasant, Jolinstown, and Altoona
Many of the klaverns had a membership above five hundred and
few indeed that did not enroll more than a hundred members.

Although few accurate figures are at this writmg available
observers are agreed that the peak of the numerical strength of
the Klan in western Pennsylvania came toward the end of iyZ4,
when the total active membership of the Klan reached a figure
somewhat in excess of 125,000. This figure does not include
the transient members who joined the Klan apparently out of
curiosity and immediately thereafter allowed their membership
to lapse by non-payment of dues and realm taxes. This latter
group was estimated by various Klan officials to range from
fifteen to as high as thirty percent of the total enrollment. _
In the eastern part of the realm, progress was not as rapid
. for a number of reasons. In the winter of 1921 after Atkins and
his aides had succeeded in organizing some dozen klaverns m
and about Philadelphia and Chester counties, and had a good
beginning made in his campaign for members, there occurred a
conspiracy in which the highest state officials (Grand Dragons)
of the five states north of the Ohio River and the Mason's and
Dixon's Line participated. They intended to break off relations
with the South, wrest control of their respective states from
Simmons and Clarke and keep the money which they had hitherto
been obliged to send to Atlanta. This was an amount equal to
approximately one-half of their total income and would have
represented a considerable saving to them if the break had been
successfully consummated.

Not being well planned, their attempt was abortive. In Penn-
sylvania, for instance, Atkins had not secured the approval of
Rich or even of all of his own organizers in the Philadelphia
District and so was unable to carry his own organization along
with him. Rich, sensing his opportunity, remained loyal to
Atlanta and received his reward when, Atkins having been dis-
missed, his jurisdiction was widened to include the entire State.

Unfortunately the affair had another aspect. Atkins not only
left the State but, being in a vindictive mood, took with him the
entire amount of accumulated funds of his district which Rich
estimated to be between $25,000 and $35,000. More serious than

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

this loss, however, was the removal or destruction of the records,
including the membership rolls, as well as records of receipts and
expenditures. This opened the way for numerous claims against
the Order and necessitated time and energy in reorganization
which might have been spent more profitably in expansion. To
Shoemaker and Cotton was entrusted most of this work, although
Peebles and Frazier also spent considerable time in eastern Penn-
sylvania after Atkins' dismissal.

Evidently affairs were in a state of general confusion. Cotton
and Shoemaker spent many weeks hunting up old members and
trying to get the klaverns reorganized, a task which entailed
some immediate sacrifice of profits, since the commissions of the
Kleagles depended solely upon new members. "Many times we
were so low in cash," commented Shoemaker, "that we would
match to see who would buy the glass of milk."* It is due
historical accuracy, however, to note that in view of their sub-
sequent enthusiasm for the Klan, the small remuneration which
they received during these lean months was by no means typical.

Another change in leadership took place beginning January 1,
1923, when Morris E. Freeman of the Indiana realm was ap-
pointed Imperial Representative over eastern Pennsylvania. This
change proved of small value for the success of the movement.
As the year wore on to a close, charges against Freeman's ad-
ministration grew more and more numerous. The chief item in
these indictments was the mismanagement of the monies of
the province. His enemies held that, like the provincial governors
of Imperial Rome, he was trying to make himself wealthy in a
single year. While they did not usually object to a little milking,
they rebelled at being stripped. Freeman had some friends who^
in his defense, said that he was a victim of other Klan officials
who were eager for his place.

Both his friends and enemies were doubtless correct. Sam
Rich was awake to the possibilities of the situation, at any rate.
He sent A. L. Cotton into his colleague's province to "gumshoe
around" and, if possible, to get things into his control. Cotton,
although he expressed regret regarding his breach of formal eti-
quette in playing the spy upon one whom he counted as his
friend, carried out his superior's orders. In consequence Rich
regained eastern Pennsylvania on January 1, 1924. Whereupon

The Klan Moves Into Pennsylvania

Cotton was promoted to the position of Chief of Staff in Charge
of Propagation in this area, retaining in addition six counties
in the western part of the state.

Added to this frequent change of leadership, there was another
factor which handicapped the rapid growth of the Klan m the
East, viz., the intractable "Dutch." Cotton and his associated
Kleagles were a long time learning to work with them. Militant
Protestants with all the inherited prejudices of their persecuted
ancestors the "Pennsylvania Dutch" were easily persuaded to
join in the Klan's anti-Catholic crusade. Naturally clannish they
listened with interest and approval to exhortations for an increase
of the spirit of fraternity and of high loyalty of man to man,
but they resented the demand that they give blind military obe-
dience to the realm officials even though the majority of Klans-
men throughout the State had been willing to give it.

To any one of the klaverns in the Pittsburgh district. Rich or
Cotton could give an order with practical certainty that it would
be carried out without challenge to their authority. To their
chagrin they found that this was not true in the German sections
from Lancaster and Lebanon to Allentown. As an example, the
realm ofhce had been accustomed to a high-handed policy rela-
tive to the granting of charters, allowing their issuance or not
as it chose. The Allentown klavern had its own ideas about the
matter and expressed them freely. After some difficulties,
Lemuel Peebles was sent to "lay down the law." As he relates it:

"Cotton and Shoemaker had both gotten in bad and then
I went down. Boy! Did I get in Dutch too ! They were a
bunch of sincere fellows who didn't like to be dictated to—
'Dutchmen' you know. They could be led but not driven
Cotton had tried to drive them. I made a big speech all
about the great size of the organization; how the leaders
were brainy men— had to be, or they could never have de-
veloped such an organization. I told them that here at
Allentown they were acting as if they knew more than the
■ state officials who had built up the Order Well, they just
sat and Hstened. I could see they werent with me. One
of them finally got up and said, 'Will you sit down and let
me talk a while?' He began telUng me what the situation
was there. I saw that I had to change my mmd, so i.said,

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

'Well, up at the State office they didn't know that.' I
^ promised that I would deliver the charter. They wanted
to know when. So I had to fix a date."

Finally the state leaders learned to allow the "Dutch" a freer
hand and they became the most loyal of all Klansmen within
the Realm, and their organizations survived the disruption that
was later to destroy the State organization and most of the local
klaverns as well.

In spite of mistakes and changes in leadership, membership in
the eastern province did grow although it reached its peak a
year later than in the western province. At its height, the roll
of active members totaled some ninety or ninety-five thousand
of whom a third were in and about Philadelphia and its suburbs.
Other centers of activity were Schuylkill, Luzerne and Carbon
counties with their mining areas and large foreign population,
and the Lehigh Valley where the Klan was quite strong.

The problem of determining the membership of the Klan in
the State when official records are unavailable is complicated by
two factors. One was the practice of the organizers to claim
an exaggerated number on the theory that nothing is more
potent for the success of an organization than the appearance
of success. The other was the desire of officials to minimize
the enrollment in their reports to their superiors in order to
avoid remittance of full amounts of monies collected. Very in-
accurate records were kept by some officials for this reason and,
jwhen kept, were conveniently lost on occasion.

A controversy growing out of such a situation took place in
the late summer of 1923 between Sam Rich and his immediate
superior D. C. Stephenson. It sheds some light on the possible
membership of the Klan in Pennsylvania at that time. Rich
claimed that only 260,000 members had been taken into the Order
in his realm. This, of course, included withdrawals and mem-
bers not in good standing, as well as the active members at the
time. Stephenson charged Rich with failure to report 60,000
members, in order to avoid the necessity of paying him the
amount of money due on these memberships. No records were
found to prove Stephenson's contention and when he resigned
from the Klan in the autumn of that year the matter was
dropped,** It seems reasonable to believe that Rich, in this in-

The Klan Moves Into Pennsylvania 31

stance, would have no reason to exaggerate the membership in
his report to Stephenson and that 260.000 may therefore be con-
sidered a basis for estimating the minimum number enrolled m
the Klan prior to July, 1923.

In explaining the growth of the Ku Klux Klan member-
ship in Pennsyfvania to a number in excess of 260,000. its gen-
eral statement of principles is important. These were the stock
in trade of a host of Klan lecturers and pamphleteers. If the
speaker was familiar with the special likes and aversions of the
community, he selected from among the Klan principles the ones
which most nearly corresponded and explained them at length
If unfamiliar with the community he usually spoke in general
terms about them all. With rousing ideaHsm, diluted often by
bits of crass realism the better to hold attention, the orators dis-
coursed upon their themes ending, usually, with some variation
of the following:

"These are the principles of true Americanism These
are the principles of the Christian religion. If you are a
patr ot i? you are a Christian, then you belong with thou-
sands o your fellows in the Ku Klux Klan who arent
ashamed to defend the old U. S. A. and to stand up for
their religion."

Then as a final touch, the impressive language of a foreign
phrase :

"You, too, should write across your escutcheon: Non Silba
sed Anthar."^

And after the hush and the burst of applause, Klansmen, scat-
tered through the audience, served as translators for any who
might wish such erudition made simple.

Indeed, the mass of listeners found little wrong with the in-
nocuous statements of beliefs and purposes which clever _ speakers
colored with the hue most suited to the community m which
they spoke. Not trained to cull the demagoguery from soundmg
rhetoric or even to suspicion it, the average Pennsylvanian
swallowed wholesale such pronouncements as that or the circuit
rider and iiistory professor who. as founder and Imperial Wizard
of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan proclaimed:

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

"To the lovers of Law, Order, Peace and Justice of all
People, Tribes, and Tongues of the whole earth, Greetings:

"I, and the citizens of the Invisible Empire through me,
make declaration to you :

"We, the members of this Order, desiring to promote
patriotism toward our Civil Government; honorable peace
among men and nations; protection for and happiness in
the homes of our people; manhood, brotherhood, and love
among ourselves, and liberty, justice and fraternity among
all mankind; believing we can best accomplish these noble
purposes through a mystic, social, patriotic, benevolent as-
sociation, having a perfected lodge system, with an exalted
ritualistic form of work and an effective form of govern-
ment, not for selfish profit, but for the mutual benefit, better-
ment and protection of our oath-bound associates, and their
loved ones ; do physically, socially, morally and vocationally
proclaim to the world that we are dedicated to the sublime
duty of providing generous aid, tender sympathy and frater-
nal assistance amid fortune and misfortune, in the effulgent
light of hfe and amid the sable shadow of death; and to
the exalted privilege of demonstrating the practical utility
of the great (yet most neglected), doctrine of the Fatlier-
hood of God and the Brotherhood of man as a vital force in
the lives and affairs of men.

"We invite all men who can qualify to become citizens
of the Invisible Empire to approach the portal of our benef-
icent domain, join us in our noble work of extending its
boundaries, and in disseminating the gospel of "Klankraft,"
thereby encouraging, conserving, protecting and making vital
the fraternal relationship in the practice of an honorable
clannishness ; to share with us the glory of performing the
sacred duty of protecting womanhood; to maintain forever
the God-given supremacy of the white race ; to commemorate
the holy and chivalric achievements of our fathers; to safe-
guard the sacred rights, privileges and institutions of our
Civil Government; to bless mankind and to keep eternally
ablaze the sacred fire of a fervent devotion to a pure
Americanism.

"The Invisible Empire is founded on sterling character, and
nnmutable principles based upon sacred sentiment and ce-
mented by noble purposes. It is promoted by a sincere
unselfish devotion of the souls of men, and is governed by
their consecrated intelligence. It is the soul of chivalry,
virtue's impenetrable shield; and the devout impulses of an
unconquered race,"®

The Klan Moves Into Pennsylvania

At "open meetings" of the Order, curious visitors were usually
circularized with sheets upon wliich appeared the Klan articles
of faith, assertions of belief in:

"The tenets of the Christian Religion.
White Supremacy.
Protection of our pure womanhood.
Just laws and liberty.
Closer relationship of Pure Americanism.
The upholding of the Constitution of these United States.
The Sovereignty of our State Rights.
Freedom of Speech and Press. _
Closer relationship between Capital and American Labor.
Preventing the causes of mob violence and lynchings.
Preventing of unwarranted strikes by foreign labor agita-

^° Preventing of fires and destruction of property by lawless
elements.

The Hmitation of foreign immigration.
:■. The much needed local reforms.
Law and Order.""

When the Kleagle, flushed with enthusiasm for the virtues of
his Order — not to mention its possibilities as a business enter-
prise—read again this list of principles and asked with challenging
voice, "Friend, where do you Hne up?" the average citizen was
defenseless. Not trained in the various uses of language, he did
not notice the meaninglessness of such generalities as "much
needed local reform," "unwarranted strikes," "just laws," "pure
Americanism," and "tenets of the Christian religion." He did
not ask for more specific definition of terms nor inquire whether
the Klan obligation and organization were consistent with
"liberty."

The Klan organizers easily recognized the advantage of such
generalities. While interpretations of "pure Americanism" or of
"just laws" differed widely among Pennsylvanians, each was will-
ing to hear them praised assuming that his own variety was "pure"
and "just." Thus the Klan, in the hands of skillful organizers,
could become literally all things to all native Protestants. Happy
was the Kleagle who understood his area and the accepted beliefs
of its people; it was profitable.

In the work of promotion, the state and national offices main-
tained, to assist their Kleagles, a group of speakers, some of

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

whom pledged themselves to fill speaking engagements at their
convenience at a guaranteed fee per address. A large part of this
group of speakers consisted of ministers who found such remu-
neration a welcome addition to their small salaries. Moreover, the
ministers were generally the most successful type of lecturer and
indirect evidence, perhaps, that a large number of those who
joined the Klan thought that they were supporting Christian
idealism when they paid their initiation fees.

In singing the praises of the Klan, these speakers plucked a
harp of powerful prejudices. To the accompaniment of the twin
strings of "white supremacy" and, by inference from the prin-
ciples of "limitation of immigration," Nordic supremacy, whole
hymns of racial exultation were sung. Fervent anthems were
raised to glorify "the Constitution" and its "pure Americanism,"
as contrasted with socialism, communism and the mouthings of
"foreign agitators." The "protection of our pure womanhood"
and the "prevention of the causes of mob violence and lynching"
(not the lynching) were themes for many a spicy and sentimental
composition. But more frequently than all others were intoned
variations of the religious theme — witty ditties about the caprices
of some priest or prelate and solemn dirges warning of the doom
of Protestantism if left undefended by stalwart Knights of the
Ku Klux Klan.

Many speakers were complete failures and were soon weeded
out. Some remained in service and soon gained in popularity.
Rev. J. W. Dempster, Rev. Fred R. Dent and Rev. J. F.
Daugherty— "the three D's that were better than D.D.'s," — Rev.
J. S. Strayer, Rev. Bruce Lehman, Rev. J. E. Flemming, Rev.
Hartranft and Rev. G. A. Williams were among the ministers
who were highly regarded by the state officials. From outside
the State came numerous lecturers of whom James A. Comer,
from the Atlanta office, and Thomas A. Heflin, of Alabama, were
acceptably received.

The procedure which characterized the most successful speakers
was soon in common use. It was partly necessitated by a rough
sense of justice and fair play which, while common in a measure
to most peoples, is peculiarly characteristic of the native American.
Developed in America's broad frontier areas where caste and
aristocracy of birth did not survive, it still remains a part of

The Klan Moves Into Pennsylvania 35

the cultural heritage as is shown by the sympathy generally given
by the mass of Americans to the underdog, the fellow whom
they feel hasn't had a fair chance.

The strategy of the Klan orator was, then, to cast the native
white Protestant not as belonging to the predommant and con-
trolling group as is the case throughout most of our area, but as
the poor, oppressed sufferer, plundered by foreigners tncked by
"Jesuits" and robbed of his birthright by scheming descendants
of Abraham. If a Klan spokesman could make Catholic, alien and
Negro appear in the role of aggressors, these groups became the
villains of the drama and the sympathies of the audience would
automatically descend upon the nativists, demand for them simple
justice and a square deal," and justify a defensive attack against
their enemies.

A specific example from the literature of the movement will
clarify this point. In flat denial of the claim that the Klan was
"the most American of all patriotic orders" many of its critics
condemned it for being aggressively un-American. Thus W. L.
Pattangall, defining Americanism as a spirit which "cannot toler-
ate caste or religious distinctions in politics, social life, or legal
standing, (and which) especially cannot for a moment endure the
breeding and exploitation of hatred and prejudice as a means to
swing public opinion and political power," indicted the Order
for doing just these things which, he added, "it makes a virtue
of doing.""

The reply to this charge, entitled "The Klan: Defender of
Americanism," and credited to H. W. Evans' authorship, illus-
- trates the typical Klan strategy. This was to maneuver the
opponent into a position of attacking Americamsm and the Klan
into the "Defender of Americanism." The author in this in-
stance accepted the definition of Americanism made by his critic
(with a minor qualification) "not merely as an abstraction to be
talked about, but as a heritage to be fought for." ' The Klan
he continued, "finds all these violations of Americanism being
practiced deliberatelv and persistently" by other groups whereas
his Order "makes a principle and a duty of resisting them.

Condemned for intolerance Evans replied that it is not un-
American to be intolerant of intolerance. If the Klan is intoler-

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

ant when it condemns those groups which subvert Americanism,
it is proud of it.

"In a nation toleration becomes a vice when fundamentals
are in danger . . . The American liberals . . . have ex-
tended their liberality till they are willing to help the aliens
tear at the foundations of the nation. They have become
one of the chief menaces of the country, instead of the sane
intellectual leaders they should be . . . They give an almost
joyous welcome to alien criticism of everything American.
The unopposed attack on the Puritan conscience is only one
illustration; our liberals today seem ashamed of having any
conscience at all . . . Tolerance is more prized by them
than conviction."^^

This thrust at American liberals is significant and reveals an
adroitness which efifectively strengthened the Klan case. Cultur-
ally the Klan represented the status quo elements in the state and
nation. Old line stalwart conservatives, Klansmen were disturbed
and angered to see divergent religious groups, peoples with col-
lectivist ideas of government or with different economic and
social standards becoming an increasingly larger element in Penn-
sylvania's population, especially in the industrial and mining areas
where they definitely challenged the culture which "the fathers"
had built up. The Klan's real appeal was to the group of
Americans who were opposed to cultural change and to those
reactionaries who wished to bring back the good old days before
the so-called "new immigration." It is quite understandable, in
view of this fact, why liberals were considered worse than
foreigners. They were among "the chief menaces" because, being
natives yet welcoming change, they became traitors to their own
kindred.

That there was strategic advantage in the Klan's position is
obvious. Status quo groups, no matter what methods they use,
can deny that they are aggressors. They always defend; they
always protect what is or was. Their attacks are always counter-
attacks to regain lost territory; their campaigns against the foe
are never for the purpose of forcing the foe to change but always
for the purpose of making their own treasured possessions or
culture secure.

The opponent of the Klan might deny outright the value which
Klansmen placed upon the cultural heritage passed down from

The Klan Moves Into Pennsylvania 37

the fathers. He would then deny the premises of the Klan
ideology. Although this was the most direct and most logical
form for criticism to take, in most communities it was not used.
The offending critic who used it was usually thrown without the
city gates and verbally stoned to death. There was too much
ancestor worship in the average native to permit such "base
slander."

The more tactful critic launched his attack not at the premises
of the movement but at the methods which were used by its mem-
bers. In this case too, the natural defenses were strong. Many
people firmly believed that a good end generally justified the
means. At any rate, if your enemy used unethical methods as
was the case, for instance, when poison gas was first used in the
World War, the only alternative to retaliation in kind was the
sacrifice of your cause. That "Jesuit trickery" deserved to be
countered with "masked violence" was accepted without argu-
ment. He was a mollycoddle or "a spineless liberal" who re-
fused to so defend the faith of his fathers and his country's
institutions.

To be sure, the Klan was obliged, in order to justify some
of its methods, to claim that the opposition groups used methods
which were worse. As a consequence the Klan gave widest pub-
licity to and even exaggerated the faults of its opponents at the
same time minimizing or maintaining a stony silence about their
virtues. Unfortunately, the average Klansman, schooled in the
over-simplified ethics of American cinema plots with their totally
black villains and lily white heroes, was ready to believe the entire
heirarchy of the Catholic Church as basely villainous as the
scoundrels whom some lecturer had unearthed from the vast
annals of that institution to demonstrate his point; to picture
most Jews whom they did not know as murderers of prophets
or as crafty Shylocks ; and to regard all foreigners not among
their personal acquaintances as plotting to undermine the founda-
tions of the Commonwealth.

The Klan's critics could and did deny the one-sidedness and
the exaggeration of this picture but since they admitted the partial
truth of the Klan charge, the effectiveness of their criticism was
weakened. It was waived aside as lacking insight. Such critics,
Klansmen were told, did not know the inside facts. Too ready

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

to think well of their enemies, they were unaware of the secret
machinations which more watchful eyes perceived. The policy of
the enemies of American institutions was always to act the part
of loyal citizens in public while they carried out their evil designs
behind drawn blinds and closed doors.

The belief in the minds of the nativists that there was a serious
plot against American ideals and institutions, the success of which
only immediate organization and united action could prevent,
was as important for the growth of the Ku Klux Klan as the
belief in the Devil and his angels was for the growth of the
medieval Christian Church. It was the sine qua non of its exist-
ence. There was a considerable number of Pennsylvanians who
had been influenced by the A.P.A. movement, who had come
under the influence of periodicals of The Menace type, or had
read the publications of the Rail Splitter Press (Milan, 111.).
These found the Klan an institution which gave expression to
sentiments already formed and so needed no urging to join it.
There were thousands of others, however, who learned for the
first time in Klan meetings that their ideals and culture were in
danger.

That they were so credulous of such statements may be partially
explained by the fact that the period of Klan growth was coin-
cident with a period of post war economic depression. The cost
of living had risen. General disillusionment and fear was com-
mon. All foreigners were suspected and the ugly clouds of
popular unrest were crackling with a high potential of hatred.
The fact that Pennsylvania decisively rejected Wilson and his
League in the 1920 elections, bade godspeed to Palmer in his
heresy hunt and rejoined with New York in its enactment of
the Lusk laws was significant of the temper of the times and
of the willingness of the people to find a scapegoat upon whom
to blame their troubles and against whom to discharge their
pent up emotions.

It was also a time when the crusading spirit was running high.
The war for Americans had not been a war of exhaustion and
the high idealism with which pulpit and propaganda had fortified
the conscripted soldiers was by no means spent. The growth of
the Klan will not be understood unless it is recognized that the
reforming zeal which, during the war, was directed toward the

The Klan Moves Into Pennsylvania 39 -

illusory hope of ridding the world of autocratic and irresponsible
government and its by-product of aggressive war. was given new
object and goal by the Klan leaders.

To characterize the Ku Klux Klan as a reform movement
may recall an expression of that cynical stalwart Conkhng when
he called reform "the last refuge of the scoundrel." Indeed, the
Klan did often demonstrate how bad reform may be. Neverthe-
less no other theme stands out so clearly from the discussions
regarding the Order which the writer has had with Klansmen
all over the state of Pennsylvania than the desire for reform,_
Other motives were undeniably interwoven with it: the desire
for personal gain, the love of display, the thrill of excitement,
the satisfaction which comes from having power over one's fellow-
men Still in the varied activities of the Klan, from the worst
instances of kidnapping and cruelty to their hymn singing and
educational meetings, the least common denominator of their
programs of action was the idea of reform.

Moreover, the Klan's reform program was not the idle purring
of a high powered emotional engine. The engine was usually in
gear It found expression in deeds and in this it was well adapted
to the post-war days when thousands of men had been schooled
in methods of direct action in camp and trench. The Klan claimed
to be "the only order of men . . . who have organized them-
selves for . . . the militant defense, fulfillment and enforcement
of Protestant Americanism ... It is militantly operative."^'

"The Klan stood for the same things as the Church," boasted
one Exalted Cyclops," "but we did things the Church wouldn't
do. They talked about morals in the churches, but if some young
fellow got into trouble or some couple was about to get a divorce,
the churches wouldn't mess in it. We acted. There are at least
five couples in this community that were having domestic trouble
which we helped straighten out." This quotation is typical.
Klansmen as a group did not come from the more intellectual
classes who would be interested in the theory of government.
They neither understood nor cared about such topics as the re-
form of the jury system or the consolidation of township govern-
ment. Any suggestion of "constitutional reform" would only
have frightened them and aroused their hostility.

40 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

Most Klansmen were interested in the more personal aspects
of evil whether it was found in public officials or in their neigh-
bors. The ofihcial who accepted bribes or who discriminated
against the native Protestant or gave evidence of partiality to a
Catholic, Jew or foreigner was watched, warned, and if unre-
formed, opposed at the next election. Neighbors, too, if they
broke the recognized ethical codes of the community, were often
reprimanded or threatened. Especially was this true if the of-
fender was foreign born, colored, or of a differing faith. It was
more difficult to get action against one of their own kind ; rarely
indeed were offending Klansmen punished except with dismissal
from the Order.

Typical were the following cases which are set down as nearly
as possible in the language in which they were told the author.

"Recall the two nigger whore-houses opposite the school
house at McKees Rocks ? Why even the school teachers were
being bothered. We tried but couldn't get the Law to act,
so one night, eight of us visited the place. We came in two
big Packards. We had brought two crosses all wrapped and
soaked and ready to burn which we planted, one in front
of each house. We set fire to them and then rode off and
loafed around town for a while. About one o'clock we
came back to see what was going on. Pretty soon we saw
one of the boogies open the door a little and look through
the crack to see if anyone was around, then make off up
the street with her suitcase. It wasn't long until another
curly head came out; then in a Httle while, another. There
was an early morning train due at 2 :30 and they were making
for the station. That train carried the whole bunch of them
away that night. "^^

"And you remember the Greek at Finleyville who was
messing around with the little girl? Boy! Did he make
a quick get-away!"^®

"And the nigger living with the white widow-woman? It
didn't take him long to pack up either.""

"Then there was the case of 'Qiief Hughes, a nigger
ex-policeman at Kenneywood Park. He still had his badge
and had been collecting graft from couples for several years.
Couples would go up in the field near the park to pet. This
nigger had a bunch of kids parked around the field to give
him the high sign. He would then come up, show his badge
and tell the couple they were under arrest. He would hand
them a regular line about how he supposed it would be

The Klan Moves Into Pennsylvania 41

embarrassing for their names to appear in the Papers-
especially the girl's name, so maybe it could be fixed up if
they choL. In this way he had been collecting ten or fi teen
dollars, sometimes as high as twenty-five dollars to let he
couple ofT. Well, we took the matter to Chief Detective
Robert Brown, of Allegheny County but he wouldn t do
anything with it. If we got more evidence, he said, then he
might handle it. We brought a whole crew the Homestead
Wreckers among them, and scattered them through the Park
one Sunday. We caught the gentleman m the act but the
detective they had sent got yellow and wouldn t make the

"Then we got the promise of detective Prosser. We had
to go for him but he was one of the best. This time we
had the thing planned. Eddie Burns, a little fellow, dressed
up in his sister's clothes and made a good looking sweetie^
We sent him up in the field with a big six-footer and they
began loving it up. Pretty soon the big nigger came up to
them and, flashing his badge, said, 'You are under arrest.

"We had given the six-footer a five dollar bill which we
had taken to the bank to have marked for identification and
we had ourselves marked it._ Well they came down the road,
the nigger reeling of? his line.

"T usually get twenty-five for this.'
"'But I have only five. Can't you let us off for that?
"They had a big argument but finally the mgger agreed
and took the money. Just about that time up stepped Prosser
and put him under arrest. We hustled him into my car and
started for the jail. He began spouting off and attemp ed to
take a pass at one of us. He was soon shown that that
wouldn't work. Then he changed his tune and tried to honey
up to us, finally pulled a bottle of whiskey out of POcket
and offered it around. Nobody would take any. When he
offered it to me, I said 'Sure 1' and put the bottle m my pocket.
He raised a fu^s and I told him, 'No, I'll just keep this for

further evidence.' ^ . • ^ j j

"Well to shorten the story, the 'Chief was convicted and
eot— I've forgotten how long— but anyway he died in jail.
We got three kids, too, who had been helping him. One
of them was sent to Morganza."^^

In addition to the cases where the Klan either aided the Law
or took matters into its own hands because of the Law's delays
or failure to act at all, there were other cases where wrong was
acknowledged to exist but the law was incapable of acting. As
one judge reported to Stanley Frost: "One of the things that

42 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

makes a judge's life hard is the wrongs for which there is no
legal remedy; the unfair but not criminal methods of slick crooks,
the betrayals of women where more harm than good is done if
the law is called in, the oppression of the money lenders the
lazmess of men who let their children starve— all so common we
take them for granted— I can't do anything about them."^^ Some
local klaverns tried to deal with this class of evils more than
with any other kind, and the success which met their efforts in
this regard was the basis of the confident assertions of scores of
Klansmen that "The Klan did aid my community." For example
the Exalted Cyclops of Lincoln Klan confided:

^ "There was a poor woman over by the mountain not far
from Laurelville whose husband had deserted her. She and
her small children were living in a place hardly fit for
animals. We sent investigators over and they found the
children so undernourished as to be literally starvin<^ The
woman told us a sad story. Her husband was a loafer and
had recently pulled out'-had gone to a neighboring state.
Since there he had sent nothing to his family. We took the
trouble to locate him and ordered him to return home We
made it plain that it was high time for him to straighten
up and take care of his family. He came, too. He knew it
would be much better for him if he did."-"

The same swaggering but apparently effective action was taken
by another klavern near Pittsburgh :

< "In this town there was a shiftless man by the name of
YVt ■• wasn't getting along. His five
children were in want. We investigated and took them about
ten dollars worth of food, enough to tide them over a little
time.

"The way we did it was this : First a man in civilian clothes
canie to the door and told the family that they were about
to have visitors ; that these visitors would be dressed a little
differently from the ordinary but that they were not to be
tnghtened on this account as the visitors were their friends
If they thought the children might be frightened, they could
put them to bed or in the back of the house.

"Five of us came in our robes and looked the place over
Ut coiirse we already knew the shape it was in and their
condition We had found a job for the man, too. and had
coached the speakers upon what to say.

The Klan Moves Into Pennsylvania 43

"'What was needed?'" one of us finally asked in solemn
voice. They replied that they were about to be turned out
of the house. They were back three months rent and he
landlord was demanding payment. It was evident, too, that
They needed clothes.

"'What is the matter? No work? . . . Well, have you
tried to find work?'

" 'Sure Been everywhere hunting a job. All the plants
are running full. They're not taking on any new men.

"We tried to find out just where he had apphed for work
and he named a few places but I think he was lying.

" 'Now we are going to help you,' we said. 'You go down
to such-and-such a plant tomorrow and ask f or ^work. We
hear they are taking on a few men down there.

" 'But they wouldn't take me,' he objected. 'I've never
dug coal.'

'"That's all right; you go down and see what work ^ they
have. And if you can't get fixed up there go to . . . and
we named two other places.

"Well we had it all fixed up and he got work all right.
But after about a week he failed to show up at his work.
We went around to see him.

" 'What's the trouble ? Sick?'

" 'No.' he said, ' but I'm pretty sore. I thought I ought
to rest up a little.' ,

" 'Well we advise you to go back to your job . . •
took the hint and finally the landlord got his rent and the
family had something to live on."

Then to point the moral, the Klansman who told the incident
added :

"Now you see that was a case where the Law wasn't as
good as our action. The only thing the wife could have
lone was to sue him for non-support Then if she had go ten
a judgment it would have meant only a measly tj/ee dollars
a week which wouldn't have kept her family. We,kept the
home together as well as provided for their needs. '

While some action closely resembling the above instances was
taken by almost every klavern throughout the State, the requests
which the local organizations received for such action were much
more numerous. John C. Miles, ex-mayor of Wilkinsburg and a
prominent member of the Klan in that place and throughout

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

western Pennsylvania, testified that "mothers and fathers would
beg the Klan to instill the fear of God into wayward children
who were otherwise unmanageable. People would write in to us
complaining of neighbors who disturbed the peace, of competitors
who used unfair methods, of persons or establishments suspected
of engaging in vice or immorality or boot-legging. They all asked
the Klan to do something about it. A good many of these re-
quests were anonymous and we disregarded them, of course.
We acted on a few but the chief thing that impressed one was
the confidence these people had in the ability of the Klan to get
things done. They placed a much higher estimate on the Klan
in this respect than they did in the ordinary processes of the
law."22

References

1. The fullest account the author has seen of the early days in Pennsylvania appears in
a memorandum written by Van A. Barrickman from his personal experience as a
mernber of the Order and from information gained in the conduct of Case 1897 in

the U. S District Court in Pittsburgh, during which he served as
chief attorney for the defense. This memorandum appeared in the personal papers
of Rev. J. F. Strayer. ^

2. Information secured during a personal interview by the writer with Mr A L Cotton

3. Much statistical information is scattered through the testimony filed in the
District Court ofTiccs^ Post Office Building.JPittsbuish_r^ to_Cas£-J897 in gS^it^
mentioned-^above.^ Tfie New Kensington tCTaveTThaTaK-enrolTS^^

Mt. Pleasant had 758 members; Homestead nearly 1,000; Altoona was the largest
Klavern in the State m 1926.

4. From a personal interview by the writer with Joseph Shoemaker.

5. trom a personal interview by the writer with Lemuel Peebles

5. lestimony of Roy Barclay who was employed as an investigator by D. C. Stephenson
Part of the material appears m the Transcript of testimony for Case 1897 in Equity
cited above. Some comes from a personal interview by the writer with Mr Barclay

7. I his represents a generalization made by the writer from Klan lectures to which he
„ P4"?."ally listened as well as from the notes of other lectures which he has read.

8. William Joseph Simmons: Constitution of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan 1921
edition, p. 4-6. '

9. From a Klan circular. Form P-217.

10. Forum 74/327.

11. Forum 74/806-ff.

12. Ibid, p. 808-ff.

13. Klan folder. Form C-100 (American Ptg. & Mfg. Co. Atlanta)
11 t'i^V^T^- Exalted Cyclops of Lincoln Klan.

^ A ?, , ^ r- ^°tf"" t° Joseph Shoemaker in the presence of the writer.

16. Added by Joseph Shoemaker.

17. Added by A. L. Cotton.

18. Told to the writer by A. L. Cotton.

19. Outlook 136/183.

20. Told to the writer by the E. C. of Mt. Pleasant Klan.

21. Told to the writer by H.irry Moore.

22. Told to the writer by John C. Miles.

CHAPTER 4
The Klan Changes Hands:
Progress in Pennsylvania Under the Evans Regime

"Credulity is the common failing of inexperienced
virtue " — Samuel Johnson

"When Dr. Johnson defined patriotism as the last
refuge of a scoundrel, he was unconscious of the^
then undeveloped capabilities of the word 'reform.' "

— Roscoe Conkling

In the autumn of 1922 occurred a struggle for the control of
the national organization which resulted in the complete ousting
of W J. Simmons, its founder. There had risen within Klan
circles a group of ambitious leaders who felt that the financial and
political possibilities of the Order were being neglected. Respon-
sibility for this situation was laid upon Simmons whose control
over the organization as its Emperor and Imperial Wizard was
as complete as he chose to make it. With little politica vision
and with a strain of idealism in his character, Simmons often did
not see eye to eye with many of his subordinates who wished
to use the Order to serve very realistic power and profit motives.

One of these leaders who chafed under Simmon's control was
the National Secretary of the Organization, Hiram Wesley Evans
His rapid rise in the Texas Klan and his promotion to the national
staff had only emphasized what his early experience as struggling
dentist in Dallas had taught him, namely, that too rigid a standard
of ethics was a luxury to be indulged in only by those who cou d
afford it or by those who lacked ambition. H. C. McCall, formerly
a deputy constable in Houston, but now high in the councils of
the Klan in Texas, was of similar mind. In Arkansas, James
A Comer, former jusrice of the peace but now chief organizer
of that state, was in a surly mood and welcomed a suitable change
By the time of the autumn Klonvokation (National Convention)

46 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

in November of 1922, these men, together with Kyle Ramsey, of
Louisiana, and Fred L. Savage of the Georgia Office, had per-
fected a scheme to remove Simmons from power. Evans was
eager for Simmons' place and confided to a friend that he had
already begun to take Simmons' friends away from him by
putting out "poison meat,"— tales derogatory to his character.^

As finally worked out, the plan was to rush to completion a
division of Simmons' powers. Simmons had already complained
of being over-worked and had spoken some time previously about
the possibility of having separate individuals for Emperor and
for Imperial Wizard. If they could act quickly before Simmons
had matured his plans, the Evans group thought they might cap-
ture the office of Imperial Wizard with all its prerogatives and
relegate Simmons to the Emperorship which could be made
largely honorary. If successful, this arrangement would allow
Simmons to continue to "unfold the spiritual philosophy" of the
Klan, to supervise the ritualistic work and develop what were
known as "the higher degrees," but would strip from him the
general executive and financial control of the Order.

To make certain that their plan would not be blocked in the
Klonvokation, it was necessary to get support for it from the
North. Most influential and ambitious of all northern officials at
the time was D. C. Stephenson, a young, powerfully built, per-
sonally attractive go-getter who, as Grand Dragon of Indiana,
ruled over the largest and most effective Klan organization in the
North which he hoped to whip into a powerful political machine.
Bent upon having a free hand in his realm, his correspondence
with Simmons' office had been bitterly critical of the restrictions
placed upon him. Knowing this, the Evans group called him into
conference on the eve of the Klonvokation and found him willing
to bargain, albeit the fact that he was later given charge of pro-
motion in twenty-three northern states shows that he set the
price of his cooperation high.

In pursuance of their plan, a committee consisting of Fred L.
Savage and D. C. Stephenson aroused Simmons from his bed
at three o'clock one morning during the Klonvokation to persuade
him that it was advisable to divide his duties and to have the
Klonvokation select another person for the office of Imperial
Wizard, for which office they urged him to recommend Hiram

The Klan Changes Hands

Wesley Evans. They found Simmons courteous but unwilling
to act. The necessary clause revising the Constitution was not yet
ready. Besides he had hoped, when the change was made, to
place Judge Grady, of North Carolina, in the office of Imperial
Wizard.

The committee knew that a little pressure would have to be
used upon him to secure the desired objective. As Simmons
himself recalls the incident:

Mr. Savage became grave and very pointedly said, "Don't
you permit your name to come before the Klonvokation (as
Imperial Wizard). Now if you know of any one, Colonel,
who is contemplating submitting your name, you go to him
and stop him before the meeting."

I looked at him and said, "Why?" He said. "You know
there are men here that are down here to raise hell,' and
he said, "We have information that if your name is mentioned
on the 'floor of Klonvokation, there are men there who are
going to get up and attack your character." And he said,
"The minute your character is attacked there is going to be
somebody killed. I have got men placed and have given
orders to shoot and shoot to kill any damn man that attacks
the character of Colonel Simmons. Consequently, a rough
house is going to be provoked and the Klonvokation will be
destroyed, and you know the newspaper men are here, and
not being' permitted to enter, they are sitting out there wait-
ing, hoping that some friction will be started and the Klonvo-
kation blow up, and we have had such a wonderful meeting
so far, we can't afiford for it to be broken up in a fight
and bloodshed and possibly a killing. Now in order to pre-
serve the harmony and the peace and the wonderful carry-
ing on of the Klonvokation as we have it, let us beat those
birds, and you give them a message in which you refuse to
allow your name to come before them to succeed yourself.

After a few minutes' pause they (Savage and Stephenson)
suggested that it would never do for the Klonvokation to be
destroyed, that we would never come out from in under the
disgrace of such an event, and for emergency purposes, asked
me if I wouldn't name as my choice Hiram Wesley Evans,
in order to meet the situation. I told them, as I have just
stated, that there was nothing on the board against Hiram
Wesley Evans and that possibly he might fit in in an emer-
gency as he had knowledge of the workings of the office
had been there for a year with it. And Savage says, ' Good!
All we want to do is to meet the emergency and to avert this

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

crisis, and Dr. Evans will fit in temporarily until vou can
get a man to suit you."

I answered that by saying that I believed that would be
all right under the circumstances. They said, "Then you
name Dr. Evans as your successor?" I said, "Under the
circumstances and the facts of this little conference here I
am agreeable to him."- '

When the Klonvokation met later that day a new Imperial
Wizard was chosen. Klansmen back in Pennsylvania were some-
what surprised when they learned that Hiram Wesley Evans was
the man whose "official mandates, decrees, edicts, rulings and in-
structions" their oath now pledged them to obey. Shortly there-
after D. C. Stephenson was placed in charge of Pennsylvania and
Sam D. Rich was now obliged to take orders from Columbus as
well as from Atlanta.

In the South where the Klan had acquired an evil reputation
under the Simmons-Clarke regime because of the prevalence of
masked lawlessness, Evans promptly made an effort to increase
the prestige of the Order by inaugurating a reform. He annulled
Clarke's contract. When the Atlanta Klavern defended Clarke
and demanded his reinstatement, Evans annulled its charter and
ordered the Klavern disbanded. Charges were brought against
Clarke for violation of the Mann Act— whether on a trumped up
case or not is controversial— and his influence killed. Simmons,
too, was soon persuaded to sell out his interest and retire from
the organization. In addition, Evans commissioned General
Nathan B. Forrest as Grand Dragon of Georgia with instructions
to weed out Klan lawlessness from that state. General orders
were given throughout all the realms providing that Klansmen
deposit their robes with the door-keepers of their klaverns when
leaving and forbidding Klansmen to have any regalia in their
private possession without the permission of their Exalted
Cyclops. It was hoped that this would check unauthorized Klan
demonstrations and at the same time make it easier to apprehend
any non-members who committed lawless acts while disguised as
Klansmen.

In Pennsylvania, as elsewhere in the North, there had not yet
occurred much lawlessness by Klansmen. Stephenson was, there-
fore, under no pressure to win back public approval by strict

The Klan Changes Hands

measures. On the contrary, the advent of the new regime meant
a relaxation of discipline. A. L. Cotton, who was familiar with
the Klan's activities throughout most of the state, maintained that
with Stephenson's assumption of control, money became the im-
portant thing. Under Simmons the lodge idea had been prominent
and considerable attention had been paid by the organizers m
Pennsylvania to the selection of desirable members and to rituahs-
tic instruction. Klavern meetings were held regularly each week
and initiations were generally held indoors and were well guarded.
It had not been compulsory to buy robes during the Simmons
regime, although a majority of Klansmen did purchase them .
through the Order at a price of five dollars each.

The change which occurred beginning with 1923 was described
by Mr. Cotton as follows:

"When D. C. Stephenson came in we were ordered to
call in our rituals, altar equipment Paraphernalia. M^^^^^^^
ings were to be held monthly instead of weekly. Stephenson \
told us that the oath could be administered ^.^y^^ere. The
Klan was to be 'a movement' not 'an Order^ Now ^jery
body was supposed to buy robes. So the five dolkj^ wa^
just added to the initiation fee and the robe was sent auto^
matically. The price of the robe was even raised to $6.50 /
fir a short time. Incidentally, we found out afterwards
that the extra $1.50 was to be d-ided equally betw^^^^^^^
Kleagle who got the member and the King Kleagle, Rich,
but Rich kept it all. , •

"We did call in the rituals for about six weeks. _ Dunng
that time progress virtually ceased in P^^^^y^f"'^; , ^.^^
few members that did come in were not reported and the
money was kept under another name. I- myself went down
S Evans to protest against Steve's methods but found that
EvSis was supporting him. Evans merely repeated the talk
about how we' wanted to make this -to a great movement
not iust a lodge. Rich, for his part, straddled. He tried to
keep in the go^d graces of Evans and still keep his field force
Sed! hx of us in the field at the time --usly ob^^^^^^^^^^
to the abandonment of rituahstic work and the mere col
lection of money.

"We redistributed the rituals and kept on; but the same
care was no longer given to the selection of members. O
course the membership grew. They came m by the hun
dreds ; but the old spirit wasn t there.

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

Coincident with the coming of the Evans-Stephenson regime
occurred a change in the methods of propagation. Before 1923
there had been Httle variation from the following procedure:
First a public meeting was held at which a speaker, preferably
unknown to any of his audience and introduced under an assumed
name, discussed the principles of the Order and the immediate
need for action. At this time cards were passed and those in-
terested were asked to give their names and addresses, their
church affiliation and certain other pertinent details. Next the
qualifications of those who had signified their interest were dis-
cussed in a meeting of the Klan and any questionable persons
were referred to a Klokann committee for investigation. Finally,
those believed desirable were personally solicited to join.

It required both time and skill for Klansmen engaged in solicit-
ing to keep their affiliation with the Order a secret until certain
that the prospective candidate was willing to join. At any rate
it was far too slow a process to satisfy those leaders who wished
to whip up a mass movement sufficiently large to secure for them-
selves the goals which ambition or cupidity had set. It was de-
cided, therefore, to supplement this method with practices of
demonstrated efifectiveness when used by political campaigners,
namely great open-air meetings advertised as "MONSTER
DEMONSTRATIONS." To stimulate interest and help swell
the attendance, urgent invitations were usually sent to every klan
within driving radius. Handbills were often secretly distributed
to all native-born Protestants and, where possible, newspapers
were urged to print notices of such demonstrations in their news
columns. "Eighteen Hundred Loaves of Bread for Klan Meet,"
headlined one friendly paper.* Then, days before the event,
arrows would appear along the highways directing travellers to
the site.

It was usually planned, if possible, to stage the gathering near
the center of sufficient anti-Klan sentiment to provoke a counter
demonstration. If this occurred, it was interpreted by the Klan
leaders as unmistakable evidence of the danger to the country of
all Catholics and aliens and of the need of a powerful Klan
organization to combat these hostile groups. In any case the
expectancy of trouble served to heighten the general excitement
and provided a happy interlude to the dull ennui of small town

The Klan Changes Hands 51

and village life from which most of the Klan membership came.
Thrill seekers flocked to these demonstrations and Klan officials,
if hard pressed to supply the thrills, were sometimes put to the
expense of hiring an aviator to perform a few stunts above the
crowd.

Often, as a part of the program, a huge initiation of scores or
hundreds of men was staged. The setting was usually favorable:
the dark night all around; the hillside lighted by giant crosses;
robed and hooded men weaving through the crowd ; shadows flick-
ering; on the outskirts, uniformed men bearing arms guarding
the site; the excited buzzing of voices punctuated perhaps by the
sharp report of a pistol as some nervous guard fired to frighten
a possible marauder; the gesticulating of a speaker to get at-
tention from those whom his high-pitched voice did not attract.
It was all very picturesque and calculated to free a man from his
ordinary inhibitions.

There were those who came knowing that they were to be
initiated. The various klaverns in the vicinity had postponed
initiations for weeks to guarantee a large number of candidates
for "the big night." Others had come only as friendly visitors.
An appeal was frequently made to this group to join their fellows
who were about to be initiated into the Order. If they were
moved by the occasion and had the necessary fifteen dollars, in-
vestigation was waived, the oath administered without further
routine and "the movement" enlarged.

After the initiation ceremonies and as a climax to the evening
usually came the parade. There was the excitement of getting
people into line, marshals shouting out commands, members hurry-
ing to join their units, the roll of the drums for silence, the final
order: "look straight ahead, follow your leaders and keep silence,"
and then the tramp of feet. Sometimes a band led the way. Then,
in an automobile or two, came the dignitaries in their colored
robes and the standard bearers with their lighted crosses. Fol-
lowing came robed and hooded men with only their shoes visible
outside their skirts to give some hint of their social status. Some-
times, ordered to keep their visers up, only the men from distant
delegations whose chance of recognition was small, appeared m
the line of march. Once in the town there was the crowd which
lined the sidewalks, silent like the marchers, or noisy with cheers

52 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

or curses as their prejudices decreed. Even if no untoward in-
cident happened to add excitement to the event, the marchers
always heard and saw enough to make conversation for days
thereafter.

The Klansmen enjoyed these parades. If denied the privilege
of parading, they felt that their rights as American citizens had
been withheld and they often grew violent. This was the case
at Carnegie.^ On August 25, 1923, some ten thousand Klansmen
gathered just outside the borough for a mass meeting and initia-
tion, following which a parade through the town had been planned.
Some excitement was anticipated for the town was divided almost
equally into Catholic and Protestant sections. It was rumored
that feeling was at fever height. After they had assembled, they
were informed that the mayor of Carnegie, fearful of violence,
had refused to grant the necessary permit for the parade. This
sounded to the Klansmen like a Catholic challenge. The mood
of the gathering grew ominous. Reports were carried to the
officials that if the parade was not held the prestige of the Klan
would be weakened and the crowd of friends disappointed. The
Imperial Wizard, H. W. Evans, was present and hence in com-
mand. He held a hurried conference with Sam Rich, the State
head, Roy Barclay, marshal of the parade and W. J. Dempster.
It was decided to have the parade in defiance of the mayor.«

The direct route into the town crossed a bridge over the Pan
Handle railway tracks. As the line moved down the hill, this
narrow bridge was seen to be impassable having been blocked
tight with trucks. The Klansmen detoured over an abandoned
road to Glendale but the entrance from Glendale into Carnegie
had to be made over a bridge which spanned the creek betwe'en
the boroughs. Approaching the bridge, they were warned of op-
position by an automobile which forced its way through the march-
ing men. At the bridge another car was driven across the road
to block the oncoming men. It was forcibly pushed to one side.
As the hooded men crossed the bridge and entered Carnegie a
shower of clubs and bricks rained upon them and at once every-
thing at the head of the line was in confusion. Pressed from
the rear by the advancing marchers, those at the front tried to
force their way through the mob of several hundred men and
boys who were massed in the street. Deputies who had been

The Klan Changes Hands 53

called from Pittsburgh shouted for order but were helpless.
Hoods were knocked off ; robes torn. Four persons badly bruised
were carried into a neighboring butcher shop. Others were taken
to nearby doctors. When the marchers had succeeded m forcmg
their way for about a block and a half, shots rang out and a
young Klansman, Thomas Abbott, fell to the street. Dr. Jones'
office was nearest and he was carried there. Shot m the temple
he died almost immediately.

The marchers in the rear had by this time reversed their di-
rection and hastened back to their meeting place on the hill.
Some of the hot heads who were well armed wanted to return to
retaliate. Evans cautioned prudence and most of the Klansmen
ran to their cars and drove away from the site before inquisitive
police could hne the highways and ask them embarrassing ques-
tions.

For the Klansmen who had been in the thick of the rioting,
this incident provided more excitement than they had bargained
for. Expecting resistance and willing enough to play at war-
fare some had come with pockets bulging with automatic pistols ;
but they had not steeled themselves to use them with deadly in-
tent. The shots which had been fired were doubtless discharged
more from fright than from the desire to kill.

To compensate for torn clothes, battered heads and a murdered
member, however, was the stimulating effect of the riot upon the
enrollment of new Klansmen. Americans had been attacked. A
ninety page booklet entitled The Martyed Klansman was dis-
tributed, giving in heroic style the Klan version of the incident
and the' testimony presented in the legal proceedings which fol-
lowed. Its introduction explained that:

"This is the story of the murder of a native-born American
in his native land, at the hands of a ruthless mob m Car-
negie ... .

"It tells of the dastardly deeds of an enemy in trampling
the Stars and Stripes of our country in the dust of the streets.
It tells of the unwarranted attempts to injure native-born
Americans, peaceably following the flag of our country and
the Cross of Christ in a crusade for America. It tells ot
the reserved character of parading Klansmen as shown by
their reluctance to commit violence, their earnest endeavor
to keep within the law, even when OLD GLORY was

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

dragged to the ground, and when Americanism was suffering
an open onslaught by its bitterest enemy within the confines
of our country ..."

With romantic embellishment, the story of Carnegie was retold
many times to possible recruits. Many were stirred with resent-
ment against the "dirty papists" and joined in the movement to
protect their common birthright. Evans is said to have remarked
before leaving the field the night of the riot, ahhough he sub-
sequently denied having done it, that Abbott's death would mean
25,000 new members for the Klan. If made, the statement was
prophetic. Recruits flocked into the Order in the surrounding
districts and the organizers became, at least temporarily, affluent.
Local Kleagles in other areas welcomed more of these incidents
in order that they, too, might profit.

Scottdale was first to attempt its repetition. The neighboring
town of Everson was overwhelmingly Catholic, and consequently
the schools and government of the town were controlled by the
Catholic group. The Klan felt that a demonstration might serve
to warn the Catholics that this was a Protestant country. More-
over, some Catholic youths of Everson had waylaid an automobile
filled with Klansmen returning from a neighboring demonstra-
tion, had taken their regalia and with these had staged a hilarious
early morning demonstration of their own. The prestige of the
Scottdale Klavern had consequently suffered and this incident was
another reason why local Klansmen wished to have a demonstra-
tion.

The date was set for the Saturday following the riot at Car-
negie. Word went out to the other Klaverns that there was a
tough bunch at Scottdale. Klansmen were urged to come in mass.
As an inducement free refreshments were offered. The watch-
word was, "Remember Carnegie and Come Prepared."

The community was agog with excitement for the entire week
preceding the event. The burgess had issued a permit for the
parade and the line of march was planned to pass the largest
Catholic Church in the community. Father Lambing, its priest,
was much disturbed and together with several of his more con-
servative members worked diligently to check some of his par-
ishioners who had sworn that "no masked Klansmen would get

The Klan Changes Hands

as far as Pittsburgh Street.^ Klansmeii, on their part, boasted
that if one of their number fell, there would not be a Catholic
left alive in Scottdale by the next morning.

The evening of the demonstration came. Cars marked with
small American flags had followed the signs that pointed to Kelley
Field all that day. When the time scheduled for the parade had
arrived at least three thousand Klansmen and Klan sympathizers
and almost as many Catholics lined the streets. The Klansmen in
the crowd had been instructed to be on the watch for any on-
lookers whose speech or actions showed that they intended violent
action to gather around them and be ready to prevent it. Roofs
and windows were full of organized groups prepared for action
if either side committed an overt act. The street lights over a
part of the town unexpectedly went out for a short time and
increased the nervousness of the onlookers. The Secretary of the
Scottdale Klan testified that covered trucks containing Klansmen
and equipped with machine guns were parked on the hill which
dominated the Catholic Church and parsonage.^

Finally, some two hours after the time scheduled, the marchers
were sighted. A State Trooper led the way. Roy Barclay,
Lemuel Peebles, H. C. Howard and Harry Bolan, all of Pitts-
burgh, immediately followed. But the line was disappointingly
short.' Most of the marchers were those who had just been
initiated A few more State Troopers were stationed at intervals
among them and "the Homestead Wreckers" who boasted of
their courage were also in line. Akogether there were only
1236 « in the line of march and none of them were masked. They
encountered no opposition. Having finished the parade they re-
turned unharmed to their place of meeting.

If the violence at Carnegie was a surprise to many the absence
of violence was as much of a surprise at Scottdale. Before the
parade there had been divided council at Kelley Field. James A.
Miller who, as Exalted Cyclops of the local Klavem, had been
eaaer for a chance to demonstrate the power of his organization,
had changed his mind and counselled against having the parade
at all Thoroughly frightened he refused to march. Out-of-town
officials who were less conscious of the existing feeling m the
community wished to go through with the original plans. The
situation was saved by a detail of State Police. They offered \o

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

participate in the parade but ordered that the marchers must
leave off their masks. This automatically cut down the size of
the parade for none dare march if the prospect of recognition
was great. Many local Klansmen heaved deep sighs of relief for
in spite of their boasting they had no real desire to become pos-
sible targets for bullets. On the other hand, to antagonistic
Catholics and their friends, the small group of unmasked marchers
appeared an insufficient challenge to provoke them to action.

A little excitement was provided after the paraders had returned
to Kelley Field. Several foolhardy boys, wondering what the
result would be, fired a shot from the nearby car tracks toward
the gathering. Instantly there was a heavy volley from the guards
at the Field and before the boys could get behind the sheltering
embankment, one had received a flesh wound. Klansmen had
difficulty in magnifying this incident into the proportions of an
attack. The way many of them felt about it was expressed in
the testimony of Roy Barclay, one of the stafif from the State
Office who led the parade. "And what happened at Scottdale?"
the attorney inquired. "That was a disappointment," replied
Barclay. "There was only a little skirmish . . . We went there
expecting to defend ourselves . . . and there was no trouble."

If the Klansmen were anxious for trouble, they encountered
it a few months later at Lilly, a town along the Pennsylvania
railroad in Cambria County. Here the Klan made the serious
mistake of holding a demonstration where there was not sufficient
local sentiment in the community itself to support it and to keep
opposition in check. Lilly was largely Catholic in population and
the four hundred Klansmen who had chartered a special train
from Johnstown and had come up to "give the Micks something
to think about," appeared to the Catholic leaders like a foreign
invasion and challenged them to action.

The Klansmen who had donned their regalia in the train and
had marched to their meeting place found the hostility of the
crowd which followed them ominous. They decided it would be
best to curtail their meeting and reboard their train. They were
obliged to return through darkened streets for the town lights
had been turned off. Flashlights, however, were directed upon
their faces and curses toward their ears. Rioting began when,
near the depot, a stream of water from a fire-hose was turned

The Klan Changes Hands 57

upon them. Some Klansmen attempted to seize the hose. One
was shot through the arm. Many were injured, both of Klansmen
and of their opponents. One Klansman, a Mr. Poorbaugh. sub-
sequently died from injuries received durmg the riotmg.

As is common in most cases of this kind, each side in the
conflict stoutly maintained that the other was the aggressor Nor
were they hypocritical in their attitudes. They believed it. Among
the Klansmen who participated in these parades, the prevalence
of fear was general. They thought that they were m danger oi
personal injury. Officials apparently never encouraged them to
attack opposing groups-only to defend themselves m case of
attack The few cases of rioting which took place were, of course,
magnified for propaganda purposes and this stmiulated fear
among the credulous. Likewise the suggestion, constantly re-
peated "Come prepared! We may need to defend ourseh^s !
could not help but create suspicion. One Exalted Cyclops whose
connection with the Klan was well known throughout his com-
munity never ventured forth from his home without a pistol.
When he took off his coat in Klavern meeting, there it was
hanging under his arm. If he had said nothing about it, the
suggestive effect of his example upon his own Klansmen must,
nevertheless, have been great.

It is small wonder, then, that Klansmen attended the parades
and outdoor meetings with arms. Testifying about a demonstration
in Reading, Klansman L. D. Peebles said, "Everybody was pretty
heavily armed . . • There was, as I recall. 2500 to 3000 people
there . . • (They had) all manner of defense, anyways from
Krag Jorgensens to a lump of lead on a chain . - . (One man)
had three Krag Jorgensen rifles in his Ford and six automatic
pistols on himself . . . They were always, apparently, looking
for outside interference." - At a Bristol (Bucks Co.) demonstra-
tion, police stopped automobiles containing Klansmen armed with
revolvers and riot sticks.- At a Wilkinsburg (Allegheny Co.)
parade many Klanswomen who marched were armed with maple
clubs which had been distributed to them prior to the parade and
which they carried under their robes.- At a West Kittannmg
(Armstrong Co.) demonstration which was attended by some
25 000 Klansmen from three states, the men "had revolvers and

.58

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

sawed off shotguns." The evidence showed that this practice
was customary all over the state.

In their efforts to secure publicity the Klans were generally
scornful of the local papers and in most cases would have expe-
rienced difficulty if they had tried to use them. Editors in the
smaller towns usually ended the year with very narrow margins
of profit. They could not afford to risk a boycott by either the
pro-Klan or the anti-Klan elements in their communities and this
would generally have occurred if they had taken a definite stand
on the issue. In consequence, editor after editor studiously
avoided any mention of the Klan either editorially or in his news
columns unless a conspicuous public demonstration had been held.

Moreover, the Klan speakers and organizers, as a means of
defense against a generally hostile metropolitan press, persistently
told their hearers that they could not believe what they read in
the daily papers, that the press was under the control of Catholics,
Jews and foreigners even if it was not always owned by these
groups. After the Carnegie and Lilly riots had been reported
without mercy to Klan feelings, this charge was put forth more
strongly than ever by the officials of the Order. To correct this
situation a Daily Dispatch Publishing Company was incorporated
in western Pennsylvania to print a Klan newspaper. The Realm
officials urged the purchase of stock to finance this enterprise
but in spite of liberal financial support from Klansmen, the com-
pany failed within a year because of mismanagement. When the
Keystone American, which the national office had sponsored in
1924 and published for a short time in Washington, D. C, was
discontinued, the Pennsylvania Realm was without an official pub-
lication of its own and had to rely upon other forms of publicity.

One of these was the burning of crosses. Planted high on
some hill or mountain side and announced by exploding bombs
or dynamite, a blazing cross seldom failed to bring people hurrying
out to see it. While there were instances where crosses were
burned primarily as a threat or warning, most of these demonstra-
tions were inspired solely as a publicity device. Each Klan was
instructed to burn at least four per year as a visible sign that
the Order was functioning locally.^'' Orders were often sent from
the Realm office for more spectacular displays. Harry E. A.
McNeel, Kleagle in Armstrong County, was once ordered by

The Klan Changes Hands ^9

Sam D. Rich to burn a cross at every pomt in the county where
there were organized Klans. In pursuance of th>s order he had
fifty crosses burned simultaneously in that county Herbert C.
Shaw, who succeeded Rich as Grand Dragon of the Realm, also
believed in this form of publicity. On August 6, 1927, for ex-
ample, he ordered a cross to be burned by every chartered K an
in the state. Indeed, of all the public activities of the Order, the
one which came first to the minds of non-members when asked
about the Klan was this practice of burning crosses which proved
a most effective form of publicity. Unlike press copy a burning
cross left no permanent record which might later embarrass the
Order and yet it set a thousand tongues wagging about the per-
petrators of the deed and their possible intent.

From the foregoing it is evident that the transfer of the con-
trol of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan from William Joseph
Simmons and his agent E. Y. Clarke to Imperial Wizard Hiram
Wesley Evans, while marking a temporary reform m Klan prac-
tices in the South, was coincident with the opposite tendency m
the Realm of Pennsylvania where Stephenson and Rich were
given the leadership. Having set up numerical growth and per-
sonal profit as the goals toward which to work, these men had
little patience with any of their subordinates who did not sui
their methods to these ends. Under such conditions it was natural
for the pubHc activities of the Order to grow increasingly sen-
sational and to take such forms as cross burnings, out-of-door
initiations, parades and rioting.

The temporary success which accompanied the use of sensa-
tionalism blinded the higher officials to the evils which their
methods encouraged. In the first place the emphasis- on numerica
growth by sensational demonstrations brought to the top and kept
in office an undesirable type of leaders,-men who were willing
to speak "from the teeth out," who were more interested m profits
than Protestantism and who were able, because of their lack of
scruple to turn in large numbers of recruits. Consequently the
membership rolls of local Klans were overloaded with many un-
desirables who were a constant source of weakness to the Order.
This combination of unscrupulous leaders and of uneducated,
credulous, short-sighted Klansmen craving excitement was respon-
sible for most of the excesses which in time blackened the reputa-

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

tion of the Klan in Pennsylvania just as earlier it had been
blackened in the South. One need only mention the Homestead
Wrecking Crew in which A. L. Cotton himself claimed honorary
membership, the gang of ruffians who ran the Wesley Klan in
Venango County, the hoodlums who threw cow manure over
buildings in Manns Choice, the black-robed gang who served Paul
M. Winter in Philadelphia and hauled ofif people to an old barn
outside the city fitted up as a torture chamber, the group who
proposed to castrate a Negro in Everett, the group who admin-
istered a horse-whipping in Mechanicsburg, the Harrisburg
Wreckers, the Night-riders in Reading. These are just a few
of the Klan groups within the state whose members believed in
violence and practiced it.

It is easy, however, to generalize too hastily regarding the
•personnel of the Order in the state. Certainly intelligent leader-
ship at the top was badly lacking from the start. As regards
the rank and file Klansmen, it may be safely said that after the
experience at Carnegie and Lilly and the consequent jail sentences,
bills for litigation and "lodges of sorrow" for dead Klansmen,'
only a small fraction of the membership remained permanent
advocates of violence. A survey of the Exalted Cyclops in several
regions shows that with few exceptions they were ordinary trades-
men or small business men many of whom were without formal
education beyond the elementary school. As a rule they were
free from hypocrisy. They honestly believed that there was a
definite foreign and Catholic menace. Hiram W. Evans himself
freely admitted that the Klans "were mostly composed of poor
people." 18 In 1927, seventy-three Pennsylvania Exalted Cyclops
stated upon oath that the membership of the state was "gleaned
from the average walk of life and such as composes our Prot-
estant churches, our lodges, commercial clubs and other civic or-
ganizations." The membership rolls of the Klan are still closely
guarded but from the few which have come into the hands of
the writer, the conclusion can be drawn that, barring the intellec-
tuals and the liberals, the white, native-born Protestant population
was occupationally well represented. Unquestionably, however,
the most credulous parts of this population found their way into

The Klan Changes Hands 61

the Klan The rolls of the local organizations should have con-
siderable value to those who make it their business to traffic m
fear and turn credulity into profit.

References

1 D. C. Steohenson. From his aeposHion filed m " „ ^H.SIf 092?)^- lo"'"^-
i^&to"th^^ w/i^eTb/I- L. Cotto. in a personal interview.

testimony presented at the C°""er s mquest^ub^^^^^^^ .nc tmg to

Abbott. John Conely, Bwgf ^ . p/^'j-;'^^^ 'before Justice Prosser is valuable See
Riot and the testimony given at his hearing Deruic j above): H.

also the testimony of followmg, P^"-;|f^- S/263 « • Roy'saTclay. ,./154 ff;
k t l^^'^^h 3A^^or^e mcidents^^

S^;t\t'T^:yf *th'[hrmu^r'def. SfeghTnVc"unty Court of Oyer and Terminer.
6. IS7of'>or?. Bar^Uy-'tr^nfcrip-t'of testimony. Case 1897 in Equity (above),
vol. 1, P- 136. . T-j„,„,j ■Miiipr K C resident of Scottdale.

I- t'o t?e wrr b'/j't-K^lt^l'/lecJ^Ur^y-of the Scottdale Klavern.

11. Testimony of Joseph G. tlemmer, c. ^. ui j

II- l^i^emeiifohohn J. McGuckm, Chief of Police at Bristol. Van A. Barrickman
14. S?pfoT Testimony (ibid) ii/364 ; T.timony of Mrs. Mamie Bittner.

l-ilS:^^.S^-M.S?e-: Transcript of Testi-

mony, Vol. 1, p. 3.20. iq=^ n :>

18. The Kourier Magazine, February, 1953, p. -

CHAPTER 5

The Organization of the Klan

'The government of the order shall ever be military
in character, especially in its executive management
and control, and no legislative or constitutional
amendment hereafter shall encroach upon, affect or
change this fundainental principle of the Invisible
Empire." — FroTii Article 1, Section 2 of the Klan
Constitution

There should have been little doubt in the minds of the "citi-
zens" of the "Invisible Empire" about the general type of organi-
zation they had joined. It had a written constitution which was
distributed widely. Drawn up and published under the regime
of Col. Simmons/ it was largely written by him although the
supreme legislative body of the Order was vested by the charter
with the power to "adopt and amend Constitutions and By-laws,"
and a committee of that body did work over the instrument prior
to its publication. This constitution set up a highly centralized
"Empire" which was subdivided geographically into "Realms" or
states and these in turn further divided into "Provinces" (groups
of counties) and into local districts called "Klantons." This last
division might include a township or small city or a few wards
of a larger city. It represented roughly the area from which the
local Klavern drew its members.

Each of these geographical areas had its own set of officers.*
The Klanton officers with minor exceptions were duplicated in
the Province and were differentiated by the prefix "Great." Simi-
larly the state officers were designated as "Grand" and the national
officers as "Imperial."

*The Klanton otHcers were: the Exalted Cyclops, president; Klaliff, vice-president;
Klokard, lecturer; Kludd, Chaplain; Kligrapp, secretary; Klabee, treasurer; Kladd. con-
ductor; Klarogo, inner guard ; Klexter, outer guard ; Night-Hawk, in charge of candidates ;
and three Klokann, board of investigators, auditors and advisers.

The Organization of the Klan 63

Power was largely centralized in the national - ''I-Pj^^ts
organization It has been noted that the geographical d visions
o The Ku Klux Klan parallel somewhat the geographical divisions
o the United States government. The similarity between th
two governments ends there. The Federal Constitution of Ae
U S sets up three distinct departments of government which
were dSned to balance and check each other. _ The Klan con
^ tution provided for an overwhelmingly powertul executive de-
pirent'and, subordinate to it, relatively weak legislative and

^"TL^\egt^^^^^^^^ branch of the Klan government • called the
Klon^kadon was made up of all imperial o^cials toge"
the highest administrative officer and one elected delegate
er) from each realm and province, and all heads of local Klans
who cared to attend. Regular biennial meetings were held

The procedure of these meetings made it a comparatively simp e
„.atter'for the Imperial Wizard to control them. The ^^P^ -
officials who presided over its meetings were appointed by the
Wizard and all action taken was subject to ^^^^^^^ .
veto could be overridden by a three-fourths vote of he Klonvo
kation but in practice this was almost impossible to obtain. Vot ng
was proportional. Each realm was allowed one vote for each
r hundred Klansmen or majority fraction thereof who were^
eood standing. Each Exalted Cyclops attending was allowed a
p sonal vote'and the remainder of the realm voting strength was
divided equally among the other representatives present at the
Klonvokation.3' Since comparatively few Klans ^ ^
hundred members and many had from two to hundred mem
bers, this voting provision obviously gave the bulk of th vc.mg
strength into the hands of realm and provincial officers whom
he Wizard could control through his power « appointment^
Under such conditions an Imperial Wizard would ^ave o be
weak indeed not to be able to control the twenty-^ve per cen^^^^^^
the votes of the Klonvokation necessary to prevent his veto being

""^Bl^deT'this veto power over legislation passed by the Klon-
vokation, the Imperial Wizard enjoyed in his own "g^* ^he power
to furnish all laws for the governing of realms not f u ly or-
ganized * Even after the Realm Kloreros were estabhshed and

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

voted on their own legislation, none could become effective unless
ratified by him. This was true also of the rules and by-laws
formulated by each separate Klan. These, too, had to be sub-
mitted to the Imperial office and await its approval.*

In Kloranic and ritualistic matters the Constitution » delegated
to the Emperor complete charge of "creating" as well as of
"promulgating" the "Kloranic, ritualistic and philosophic work
of the Order." This extensive legislative power included the
right to "design or cause to be designed, all paraphernalia, regalia,
uniforms, costumes, emblems, insignia, flags, banners, and jewelry
for individual wear, honorary and official jewels, hoods, pamphlets
and literature of the Order." When Col. Simmons withdrew
from the Order giving up his title of Emperor, his office was
combined with that of Imperial Wizard and this latter office made
even more potent.

The judicial body set up by the Constitution was called the
Kloncilium. Consisting of the Imperial Wizard and fifteen other
officers called Genii and appointed by the Wizard, this body served
as the court of appeal in all matters of a judicial nature. Its
decisions were final but, according to the constitution, only "when
same are ratified by the Imperial Wizard."^ The Kloncilium
not only had the above mentioned judicial function but was also
the advisory council and executive staff of the national organiza-
tion. Included in its membership was the Klaliff or vice-president
of the Order, the Klazik or head of the Department of Realms,
the Kligrapp or secretary, the Klabee or treasurer, the Klonsel
or attorney, the Night Hawk or head of the Department of In-
vestigation, the Klokard who was responsible for publicity and
for disseminating the ideas which the national organization wished
spread among the membership. It included, as well, seven other
officers of lesser responsibilities. It was required to meet as a
group in July of each year and could be called in special meeting
by the Imperial Wizard or by five of its members. These formal
meetings were not particularly essential for a majority of the
members of the Kloncilium had their offices along with the Im-
perial Wizard in Atlanta. There was also a vague grant of
legislative power given to the Kloncilium by Section three of the
seventh Article of the Constitution which read: "It shall have full

The Organization of the Klan

power and authority ... to act in the interim between sessions
of the Imperial Klonvokation."

The most noticeable feature of the National organization was
the centralization of power in the office of the Imperial Wizard.
He was endowed with virtual dictatorship of the Order. In view
of the Klan criticism of the monarchial organization of the
Roman Catholic Church and the lip service which the Order gave
to democratic government, one is surprised to find its own or-
ganization extremely monarchial both in principle and m practice.
"The government of this Order shall ever be mihtary m char-
acter " is plainly stated in the first Article of the Constitution
and as if to make this un-amendable, there follows the statement,
"no' legislative enactment or constitutional amendment hereafter
shall encroach upon, afiPect or change this fundamental prmciple
of the Invisible Empire." »

As commander-in-chief of the Order, the Imperial Wizard was
given supreme supervision over all departments of the orgamza-
tion« "He shall have full authority and power to appoint all
Imperial officers and Grand Dragons ^» ... to remove from
office at any time anv officer of this Order of any rank or station
or capacity, or any employee whomsoever, on the ground ot
incompetency, disloyalty, neglect of duty or for unbecoming
conduct."

The "original jurisdiction" given to the Klonvokation became
a rather empty grant. The control exercised by the Imperial
Wizard over that body was determining. In practice it could
pass no legislation for the Order which was not acceptable to
him. His appointees, members of his executive council, acted as
its president, secretary, and committee chairmen." The control-
ling vote was in the hands of delegates who were his appointees,
directly or indirectly. He appointed and controlled the Klon-
cilium which was empowered to act in the interim between its
biennial meetings. Moreover, all residual power was placed m
his hands. "Whenever a question arises ... not provided for
in this constitution," the Imperial Wizard "shall have full power
and authority to determine such questions and his decision, which
he shall report to the Imperial Klonvokation. if requested, shall
be final."

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

The Kloncilium in its judicial capacity was similarly subservient
to the Imperial Wizard whose ratification was necessary for a
decision. But while this council was powerless to act in the
judicial capacity without the Wizard's approval, he in turn was
not restricted by the necessity of securing its approval, or by
effective constitutional checks of any kind.*

He, alone, had the power to "specify the conditions on which
charters shall be issued," to issue them, to suspend, or revoke
them.^" He alone was given the privilege to "specify the duties
of all officers regardless of rank or station," to "construct, in
the name of this Order, with other members for its extension,
financing, management, operation and business interests" and "to
fix the compensation therefor." ^« In short, "the Imperial au-
thority of this Order shall ever center and be vested in him and
shall not be divided." "

With this wide grant of power, it is evident that there was
little constitutional hindrance to as autocratic a rule as the Wizard
might wish. It is true that provision was made for his removal
from office for a just cause. ^° The small chance of ever effecting
such action is evident, however. A three-fourths vote of the
members of the Kloncilium together with the approval of the
Grand Dragons was necessary for his removal and all of these
officers were his own appointees and could be immediately dis-
missed for "disloyalty."

Nor need the Wizard fear removal when his four-year term of
office expired. In the quadrennial election for this office any
Klansman in good standing "as determined by the records of the
Imperial Palace" was eligible for election. But the voting was
carried on by the Grand Dragons (Wizard-appointed) who met
in executive session with voting power proportional to the mem- v
bership of their respective realms. Since these Grand Dragons
were uninstructed by their own membership and voted without
obligation to the Klansmen of their own Realms, it is difficult to
see how any Imperial Wizard who wished re-election could not

*At the time of the litigation between Col. Simmons and H. W. Evans over the latter's
seizure of control, the Superior Court of Fulton County, Georgia, decreed "that so far
as the Constitution gives the Imperial Wizard the power to veto an act of the Imperial
Klonciliui", the same is contrary to the charter." This meant that, if the Kloncilium in
its e.xecutiye capacity acted affirmatively on any matter, the Imperial Wizard was bound
by its action. When it is remembered, however, that any member of the Kloncilium
could be dismissed "at any time" by the Wizard, open defiance of his wishes merely
meant the elimination of such a member rather than a change in the 'V^'zard's policy.

The Organization of the Klan 67

obtain it. Indeed, H. W. Evans, in spite of much dissatisfaction
within the Order, has been able to maintain himself m the ofhce
of Imperial Wizard to the present time (1936).

It naturally seemed strange to many outsiders how this self-
termed one hundred per cent American Order, claiming to be
the chief defender of the fundamental principles of democratic
government, could tolerate such a frame of government Pressed
for an explanation, the statement was often made by Klansmen
that the secrecy of the Order and the type of work which it
undertook opened the way for abuses both within and without the
Order This necessitated highly centralized authority and mili-
tary discipline to keep the more boisterous and radica^ of its
members in hand. Moreover, the effectiveness of the Order, it
was said, depended upon unity of action and absolute obedience
to the governing officials. This too demanded a military rather
than a parliamentary type of procedure. In spite of p ausible
explanations, however, the contradiction between pnnciples and
practice was a vulnerable point in the Klan's defenses and proved
a serious weakness when internal criticism began to plague the
Order Indeed, the Order succeeded as long as it did only because
its membership accepted the ideals and leadership of the higher
officials and did not try to change or criticize them. The Order
was not set up as a flexible institution to be molded and modified
by its membership. It was organized to serve the purpose of
those at the top and as soon as the rank and file disagreed with
that leadership the only alternatives were to submit or get out^
The largest subdivisions of the Invisible Empire were called
"Realms" and generally followed state lines. The Imperial Wiz-
ard was given the same close supervision and power over the
realms as he exercised over the national organization. Realms
could be organized only on declaration of the Wizard and all
officials were named or approved and all laws and regulations
furnished by him during the provisional period.

The Realms passed through two stages of organization, the
provisional and the chartered stage. In the former, the chief
officer carried the title of King Kleagle which, in Pennsylvania
was later changed to Imperial Representative. This officer had
nothing but delegated authority and held office only at the pleasure
of the Wizard. There was no provision for any self-government

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

within a Realm during the provisional stage. The Wizard ap-
pointed and supervised his realm leaders who acted with dele-
gated authority only. Indeed, many of their subordinates were
responsible primarily to the national organization at Atlanta in-
stead of to the realm ofihce and were paid from national head-
quarters.

In Pennsylvania these subordinates consisted chiefly of three
groups of people. The most numerous were the Kleagles or
recruiting agents. Their duties included the organization of local
Klaverns and the collection of ten dollar donations (klectokens)
from each initiate. The Realm office parceled out the territory
among these Kleagles whose success depended chiefly upon the
number of members they were able to secure for the Order.
The second group consisted of lecturers who generally travelled
about addressing large public gatherings with the purpose of
stimulating an interest in the Klan and of aiding the Kleagles in
their recruiting. A third group of officials became necessary as
the organization progressed. These were the service men, in-
vestigators and trouble hunters who enjoyed the distinction of
being called "G-men." They were employed by the King Kleagle
to check upon the activities of the recruiting officers, to discover
and remedy any instances of dissention in the various klaverns
and to recommend the suspension, banishment or re-instatement
of Klansmen where advisable. They represented in a special way
the Realm office. They were supposed to be more familiar with
the technicalities of the organization and the intricacies of the
ritual than the Kleagles and were used to instruct and correct
the Klaverns in matters of procedure and policies and to advise
them concerning the political, educational and social methods and
measures which had the approval of the Realm officers. Finally,
as the military branch of the Order, the Klavaliers, and the Junior
Order developed, officials were appointed to administer these
groups. : ' i

When a Realm became "fully organized" the titular head was
known as the Grand Dragon but otherwise the office was little
effected. He remained an appointee of the Imperial Wizard and
remained subject to his immediate dismissal. Provision was made
in organized realms for a Klorero " or convention corresponding
to the national Klonvokation, which was at least partially repre-

The Organization of the Klan

sentative. It consisted not only of Realm officers but also of the
officers and five delegates from each Provmce of the Realm
together with the Exalted Cyclops or executive heads of each
loL klan in the Realm. The Klorero must be called on y par
tially representative because (1) the state officers were not freely
elected but chosen only on nomination of the Wizard-appomted
Grand Dragons, (2) the executive ^^^^^^ ^^^^/^^^'^^ ^^"^^
Titans) were not elected but appointed by the Grand Dragon
with the approval of the Imperial Klazik or officer m charge of
Realms, and the other Provincial officials were aU nominated by
the Great Titans, and (3) the Exalted Cyclops of the loca klans
while not nominated by the Provincial or ^^^^e heads, had to be
approved by them before they could assume office.- These fea-
tures made it possible for the higher officials to so con rol the
personnel of the Kloreros that little opposition to realm and
imperial policies developed in these Realm conventions. _

Among the powers of the Klorero was that of electing the mne
"Hydras" which made up the Grand Dragon's executive council.
These elected officers could not be installed, however, until they
had received the approval of the Imperial Klazik (later of the
Imperial KlaHf?). The Kloreros were also authorized to pass
laws for the Realm which were not inconsistent with the consti-
tution of the Order. But here, too, the heavy hand of the central
authorities could interfere. Absolute veto power over all legisla-
tion of the Kloreros was given to both the Grand Dragon and
the Imperial Wizard.-*

The full effect of this control from the top was not evident m
Pennsylvania as long as the internal affairs of the Realm ran
smoothly. There was, however, a growing minority group which
from 1924 on was opposed to the Hiram Wesley Evans-Sam D.
Rich control. This minority group found it almost impossible to
eet a hearing in the state Kloreros and they became more and
more irritated. Working outside the Klorero, it finally convinced
the national office that Rich should be withdrawn from Penn-
sylvania and, in February 1926, his resignation was announced
A temporary state head was appointed and the Imperia Wizard
promised the leaders of the group opposed to Rich that he would
nominate a Grand Dragon acceptable to the Realm. He promised
to allow the next Klorero vote on the matter. The Klorero

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

met at DuBois in August and the matter was brought up. The
choice of the Imperial Wizard was one Herbert C. Shaw, for-
merly a Methodist Episcopal minister of Erie. He was looked
upon by many as a tool of the Wizard and by others as too
rabidly anti-Catholic. When the question of his ratification as
Grand Dragon was put to a vote he was rejected. No new
nominee was put forward. Instead, H. K. Ramsey, who repre-
sented the Wizard, brought considerable pressure to bear upon
some of the delegates present and ordered another vote on the
question of Shaw's acceptance or the alternative of continuing an
appointee from Atlanta as Grand Dragon. Some of the delegates
withdrew and Shaw's appointment was ratified. This is a clear
instance of the way the Klorero could be and was controlled by
the national organization if occasion seemed to demand it. It
should be understood, of course, that the constitutional right of
Mr. Shaw to the office of Grand Dragon was unquestionable.
The Imperial Wizard had the right to appoint whom he wished.
As he had chosen to allow a vote of ratification, he could also
choose to withdraw that privilege.

With Mr. Shaw's installation as Grand Dragon, the chartered
stage of the Realm of Pennsylvania may be said to have begun.
Certain changes in the financial arrangements accompanied it*
which had the effect of putting the Realm on a self-sustaining
basis and necessitating that its expenditures be kept within the
limits of its own income.

The Provincial organization in Pennsylvania was, for consider-
able time, not highly developed. During the regime of Sam Rich
and the two temporary appointees that filled his office between
his resignation and the selection of Herbert C. Shaw, there were
but two Provinces in the Realm. The territory east of the Sus-
quehanna comprised Province I, the remainder Province II. The
latter, although organized later than East Pennsylvania, had, at
the peak of its organization, more members than had Province I,
but in 1926 it had but 46 per cent of the total Realm membership
25 and subsequently declined more rapidly.

Normally each province had eight officers, the Great Titan who
was appointed by the Grand Dragon of the Realm and seven
others who were elected by a Klonverse (convention) to which

•See Page 74.

The Organization of the Klan 71

the Realm and Provmcial officers, the Exalted Cyclops and four
delegates from each Klan m good standing might come^ fh
function of this regional organization was -"-^f ^^J^^^^^^^^^^^^^
of the Klan constitution as fraternal and social. Its purpose was
to promote good fellowship and maintain the interest of Klansmen
in their Order.=« , „

The number of Provinces was increased during the H. C Shaw
admmistration, perhaps in the hope that such action would check
the dwindling interest and the declining membership. Great
Titans travelled around and made pep speeches. Visitations were
Planned during which a gavel was presented to the visited Klan
wrh due ceremony. Regular meetings were rotated among the
different locals within the Provinces like summer union services
are rotated among the different churches of a commui.i ty Pro-
vincial news began to appear in the national organ ot the Klan
the Kourier Magazine, instead of local Klavern news witnessing
both to a smalle? activity on the part of individual K averns ..d
an increased regional activity. During the early part of the ad-
ministration of Grand Dragon Stough, who replaced H. C Shaw
in 1933, there were some fifteen Provinces. This number has
been increased to sixty-seven, so that each county in the State
is also an actual or potential Klan Province. This move has at
least substantially increased the number of Great Titans and has
perhaps served to fill some empty seats at the Realm Kloreros.
Moreover, since the Titans are appointees of the Grand Dragon,
it has doubtless served to give the Dragon added control over
these gatherings.

The Klanton-the smallest organized umt of the Order-also
passed through two stages, provisional and chartered. During
the first of these stages they were under the control of a Kleagle
who often came unrequested into a community under orders to
establish a local organization. In some instances, the Realm office
sent Kleagles into communities as a result of petitions requesting
that Klaverns be established. Sometimes a man in some outlying
area who had joined a Klavern in his county seat or larger city
thought it possible to secure enough persons in his immediate
community to form a separate unit and, often with the added
hope that he would be appointed a Kleagle, petitioned for one.

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

In whatever way the local Klavern was initiated, the officer in
charge was always a Kleagle appointed by the Realm office with
the approval of the Imperial Wizard from whom thus indirectly
he received his credentials. When it appeared that factionalism
was increasing and that there was a group opposed to his leader-
ship, Imperial Wizard Evans took the precaution to have his
Kleagles sign the following "Pledge of Loyalty" to him per-
sonally :

"I, the undersigned, in order to be a regular appointed
Kleagle of the Invisible Empire, Knights of the Ku Klux
Klan (Incorporated), do freely and voluntarily promise,
pledge and fully guarantee a lofty respect, whole-hearted
loyalty and unwavering devotion at all times and under any
and all circumstances and conditions from this day and date
forward to M^'-W-i-fevaas as Imperial Wizard of the Invisible
Empire, Knights of the Ku Klux Klan (Inc.). I shall work
in all respects in perfect harmony with him and under his
authority and directions, in all his plans for the extension
and government of the Society, and under his directions,
with any and all of my officially superior officers duly ap-
pointed by him.

"I shall at any and all times be faithful and true in all
things, and most especially in preventing and suppressing any
factions, schisms or conspiracies against him or his plans and
purposes or the peace and harmony of the Society which
may arise or attempt to arise. I shall discourage and strenu-
ously oppose any degree of disloyalty or disrespect on the
part of myself or any Klansman anywhere and at any time
or place, towards him as the supreme chief governing head
of the Society named.

"This pledge, promise and guarantee I make is a condition
precedent to my appointment stated above, and the continuity
of my appointment as a Kleagle and it is fully agreed that
any deviation by me from this pledge will instantly automati-
cally cancel and completely void my appointment together
with all its prerogatives, my membership in the Society, and
I shall forfeit all remunerations which may then be due me.

"I make this solemn pledge on my Oath of Allegiance and
on my integrity and honor as a man and as a Klansman,
with serious purpose to keep same inviolate.

The Organization of the Klan 73

"Done in the city of State of

on this the

Signed
Address

day of A.D. 19..

Witness
Address

Within the limitations etteCed ^y ^^,^^^^ XTZZ
admit members was entirely m the Kl agle s hand.

of the provisional ^^--J%f;°Z"C his commis-
raL'dse!t^hfrettrkt,:rw£.otecteditseU

:lewhat by obliging ^"-^ Z^::^ ^^^^ the tem-
The commission system by^^^^^^^ * w- P^,

an ove.empha.s r~

, rather ^^-^;^:i:^j£'J.ZZ^l:..r way and
Espectally wa th.s tru alt« ^^^^.^^^^^

was carried along by its own „ijiection was raised

donation in hand -re utrned -J^ ; "ja Ltlg high member-

t"':— r given that when the Man

ship standards, ' P ^ , ^i,„ter and secure an

delay the granting of a charter as long f
larger membership as a prerequisite

Ihere were three important f ^^^J^^ the right
a local Klavern when it was chartered, ihe hrst

eaders and, although confcsstng^ I vmpa hized^^^ ^^^^ ^^.^^ By July

5°9^26%^rf?ad fof Scl°^granted .n the state.

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

to determine who should be included within its membership.
When the charter had been granted, a vote could be taken on
each member then upon the roll, and three negative votes was
enough to reject anyone.^* Moreover, each new applicant had to
have his name submitted in three separate meetings with an
opportunity given for objections to his admission, and in addition
undergo an investigation by a Klokann committee of three. If
rejected, the applicant was barred, except by special dispensation
of the Imperial Wizard, from renewing his application again for
one year.

A second advantage of being chartered was the privilege it
gave to the local klan to share in the selection of its own officials.
The Kleagle was removed from authority and an Exalted Cyclops
and twelve Terrors were elected by the member Klansmen. It
is true these officials could not be installed until they had been
approved by the Great Titan or Grand Dragon within whose
jurisdiction they were located and until the financial obligations
of the Klan to its Province and Realm were met. Yet, in spite
of these restrictions, some measure of self-government was
obtained.

The third advantage was financial. Prior to its chartering, no
part of the "donation" fee of new members could be kept in the
local treasury. The Kleagle got his share and the remainder was
sent to the Realm office and distributed again there. After char-
tering the Kleagle, of course, was out of the picture and the
Exalted Cyclops who took his place as chief administrative officer
served without salary. Thus $7.50* of each subsequent "donation"
was retained by the local organization and could be used to meet
local expenses, the remainder going to the national office.

The judicial body of each local klan analogous to the Imperial
Kloncilium in the national organization was called the Tribunal.
It was set up only when occasion demanded and consisted of
sixteen Klansmen chosen by lot from a group of twenty-four
persons nominated by the Exalted Cyclops, Klaliff, Klokard and
Kludd. Appeals from its decisions could be taken before the
Grand Tribunal, a permanent board of twelve persons appointed

*The records of some klaverns show that only five dollars of each klectoken was
retained by the local klan.

The Organization of the Klan 75
by the Grand Dragon from among the Hydras and Giants of

"onT could be brought before these bodies .f^ t^^^^^^^
charc^ed in writing with one of six classes of major crmimal
offenses and if the Klokann committee, after investigation rec-
ottenses ana offenses were: (1) treason against the

ommended trial. The ottense^ were. ^ > ^kresDect of

United States, (2) violation of Klan oaths C^) espect of
virtuous womanhood, (4) violation of the laws ot the Ord.r
I ng allegiance to a foreign person or institution, habtual
Sunkennes? or profanity, (5) the pollution of
and (6) repeated commission of a mmor offense.^ If the Klo
kann^ omX e decided that the offense was a mmor one such
as occasional drunkenness or profanity, disobedience of the rule
L orders of the Klan or refusal to respond to a su„^
the Exalted Cyclops, the matter was referred to the iixaltea
Cyclopstt handled the case personally without holding a trial
In ase of trial for the major offenses, both the prosecutor and
he defendant (or his counsel) could summon and present wit-
nesses and argue the case before the Tribunal. No one cou d e
present in any capacity, however, who was not ^ Clansman ,n
!ood standing. Guilt or acquittal was determmed by a three-
fourths vote of the Tribunal.3^ ,,e defen ant wa-c.ed gud^y
the Tribunal assigned one of four penalties: (1) reprimand
(2) suspension, (3) banishment and (4) bamshment forever with
complete ostracism by all members of the Order.

It will be evident from the foregoing that the only way a
Klansman could be constitutionally removed from the Order by
a fellow Klansman was by the process of trial and conviction
in his local Klan and, if an appeal was taken, m the Grand
Tribunal of his Realm. If convicted in some jurisdiction other
than his own, the Klansman had the right of ^ppeal to the m-
perial Kloncilium. There was, however, one exception to this
procedure. The Imperial Wizard had the constitution^ power
"at his discretion to issue banishment order" against a Ivlansman
for any offense other than those specifically listed above which
was "inimical to the best interest of this Order."- There was
Te right of an appeal from this banishment to the Imperia
KloncLm if it was made within ninety days a ter the date o
banishment. If one assumes that the Wizard himself had the

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

right to determine what was "inimical to the best interests" of
the Order, a loose construction of "any other offense" would
allow him wide powers of banishment. It will be remembered
that the power of the Wizard to remove every official of the
Order from his office was unrestricted as was his authority to
suspend or revoke the charters of individual Klans. This right
of banishment extended his power to include every member of
organization. It was used freely to check internal opposition in
Pennsylvania and was for that reason fiercely resented by many
as an instrument of tyranny.*

Within the Order itself were several subsidiary organizations.
There was a group of Knights Kamellia, a second degree into
which a considerable number of Klansmen were initiated. A
higher Order was called Knights of the Great Forest but com-
paratively few qualified for it.** The regalia which these more
distinguished Knights could wear was finer than the white muslin
worn by those still in the probationary order of citizenship but
the donation required to secure it was correspondingly higher.
In isolated instances the Knights Kamellia maintained a complete
organization of its own and held more or less regular meetings
but in most Klaverns no separate organization was maintained
and the degrees meant little more than the experience of par-
ticipating in its initiatory drama.

The military order of the Klan called the Pennsylvania State
Klavaliers, did, however, maintain a separate organization. It
had its own constitution, laws, oath, officials, uniforms, dues and
fees. Organized in the summer and autumn of 1924, it offered
Klansmen, in consideration of a donation of $16.45, monthly
dues of not less than twenty-five cents and an oath of strict
allegiance to Hiram W. Evans,^* the privilege of wearing a white
military uniform and black leather puttees,^' of being police offi-
cers at all outside-of-Klavern meetings such as parades, natural-
izations, demonstrations and funerals, and of obeying the orders
of their superior officers.^* The duties of the Klavaliers which

*See Page 188.

**In February 1928, Imperial Wizard Evans gave orders that the mask should no
longer be worn and that every Klansman should become a Knight of the Great Forest.
This was a time when there was danger that the Order might be legally prosecuted for
lawlessness both in Pennsylvania and in Alabama in which event the leaders wished to
be prepared to abandon the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, while keeping the organization
under the name of Knights of the Great Forest.

The Organization of the Klan

were specifically mentioned in their constitution included keeping
Trder responsibility for securing all necessary permits for pa-
rld ' meetings and the like, and seeing that the robe of each
klan^ml waJ clean and that no concealed weapons were earned.
The a" ests of Klansmen at the Lilly and Bristol nots doubtless
lilted the inclusion of this last provision,^ an .em hat re-
ceived much emphasis in the succeeding General Ord r .

The Grand Dragon was ex-officio Commander-in-Chief of the
Klavaliers in his Realm. He appointed a staf¥ of two, a General
fnd a Major General, to command all the units n. the state^
Each unit might elect officers analogous to t^^ Klavern^ office^
although the constitution assigned no duties to them^ Th fi^^^^^
"General Order" signed by the Commander-m-Chief * -^^^^^^e^
the Exalted Cyclops to appoint a Klavalier captain who m turn
houM select tin for the unit and these elevei. together ..re
instructed to "select twenty per cent of the membership men m
high standing and of military age," for their Klavahe urut
Moreover, this centralization of authority was emphasized by he
Constitution of the Klavaliers which clearly stated that the
Government of this Order shall be vested Pn^anly in the m-
perial Wizard, and the Grand Dragon, as Commander-m-Ch ef ,
who shall be supreme." The will of these men, it further stated^
1st be "unquestionably recognized and respected by each and

''?L^molf 'remarkable phase of this control from the top is
authorized bv Article VI of the Klavalier Constitution. After
declaring every article bearing an emblem or an insignia o the
Klavalie^rs to L the property of the Realm orgamzation^ tee
appears this provision: "All moneys of the Klavalier Organ i-
Stion in the possession of any officers or ^^^'^l;^^^^^^^^
automatically become the actual moneys of the Staff Trea u y
of the Organization and same must be freely and promptly turned
ver on demand." A supplementary section makes th>s provision
applicable also in case of "the disbandment of a K^^f .^"^^^
Juite evidently the properties and funds of a local Klavaher um
were at its own disposal only on the sufferance of the Realm

-7^. Gilden signed this order --n^j-^^Pr^iLspon^denc'^^s^^^^^
office was held by the Grand I^^S^^-T-h^/'ifSer instance proving that many of the
K;:^T'the^Sr^v|[f selected f ,?n;%he ™Uon walks of life, rather than from
the professional or upper classes.

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

Staff. It is clear, too, that if the Staff found itself financially
in arrears, the way was constitutionally open for it to send out
"accredited officers" to make collections.

Corresponding somewhat in terminology with the military
branch of the Klan but not actually organized by it was the so-
called "military line of communication." Much stress was placed
upon its development by representatives from Imperial head-
quarters whose goal it was to perfect an organization capable
of carrying notices and secret orders to every Klansman in the
United States within forty-eight hours after their issuance at
Atlanta.*^ Where this was actually set up each Exalted Cyclops
divided up his Klanton into neighborhoods, usually on precinct,
ward or township lines. The resident Klansman in each of these
neighborhoods made up a neighborhood committee over which
a chairman, called a corporal, had charge. In larger Klantons
there were groups of committee corporals under the chairman-
ship of sergeants. Thus the Imperial Wizard's military line of
communication spread fan-shaped from his office to the Grand
Dragons and from them in turn to the Great Titans, the Exalted
Cyclops, the sergeants, the neighborhood corporals until every
Klansman was reached. It was the boast of the national head-
quarters in 1924 that already there were several Realms in which
the military communications system was perfected to forty-eight
hour efficiency. Pennsylvania, however, was not listed among
these nor did this system receive attention in many parts of
the state.

In addition to the transfer of instructions from national head- -
quarters to the individual Klansmen, it was also the purpose of
the military communications organization to gather and send in-
formation in the opposite direction. Each community committee
was under instructions to survey its area, know every man within
it, especially those who were bootleggers or engaged in other
illegal practices, know the attitudes of each on the leading ques-
tions of the day and all other information pertinent to the life
of the neighborhood. The higher officials, by getting this infor-
mation would, it was thought, be better able to direct the activities
of the Order and form its policies. The neighborhood commit- ■
tees served also as fact gathering bodies for the Civic, the Public

The Organization of the Klan 79

Schools, the Governmental and the Law Support committees of

their local klans. , ,

In directing the flow of information from the bottom of the
Order topward this communications set-up proved less etticient
than in relaying orders from the top downward. Very few klans
had trained investigators among their membership and the
snoopers who tried to mimic secret service agents m most cases
became mere gossip mongers. When an Exalted Cyclops w.^.ed
to make an investigation for himself or check on reports from
these neighborhood committees, he generally used a special in-
telligence Committee"-a few trusted men who acted secretly as

'^Trerwlrpart of the Organization m which the officials
from Atlanta and from the Realm office took more -terest than
in the finances. After Colonel Simmons had placed E. \ . Clarke
in charge of promotional activities the revenues had increased to
an amazing degree and became a tempting prize. Indeed as we
have seen, the first major struggle withm the Order was an
effort to break the control of Simmons and Clarke over this
income. This had been done. Clarke was driven out and Sim-
mons was pensioned for a short time on a monthly salary and
finally withdrew altogether from the organization, leaving H. W.
Evans and his henchmen to distribute the "gravy.

The national, the Realm, and the local divisions of the Order
shared the income. The national office received money from four
principal sources. The first was a percentage of the ten dollar
"donations" which "aliens" made at the time they applied for
citizenship. For some time half of each donation was forwarded
to the imperial treasury. This amount was subsequently reduced
to four dollars, somewhat later to $3.75 and, toward the end o
1924 to $2.50. In addition to this, the national office received
a profit from the sale of robes which cost the Order less than
$2 00 each to produce and which were sold to Klansmen for $5X)0
each At first no Klansman was obligated to secure a robe but
a good proportion of them did so. Later the price m Pennsyl-
vania was raised to $6.50. No reason was given for this in-
crease nor was the quality of the garments supplied improved.
Some Klansmen conjectured that the increase was due to the
fact that the national organization had just acquired a new robe

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

factory and was rapidly paying for it. Others thought that the
price had been raised by the Realm officials as a means of add-
ing to their income. As a result of this increase, however, the
number of robes purchased by initiates decreased. This led to
the adoption of a new policy which guaranteed an income from
this source for the future. The price was again reduced to five
dollars but it was added to the "donation" — now raised to $15.00
— which every new member was required to make.

A third source of income was the imperial tax which the
national organization collected from all chartered klans. It
amounted to $1.80 per year per member. For Pennsylvania, the
imperial tax turned over to national headquarters from the time
the first klan was chartered to October 1, 1925, totaled $94,-
653.90.'*- This represented a period of about fifteen months
since most of the klans involved had received their charters
after July 1, 1924. Although later records are not now available
it is safe to say that the imperial tax from Pennsylvania did not
decline for at least another year. After 1926 the total member-
ship of the Order declined so rapidly within the state* that,
in spite of the continued chartering of local klans, there must have
been a substantial drop in the revenue collected on a per capita
basis.

A fourth source of revenue which the national organization
enjoyed was the income from its investments. It is impossible
even to estimate this. The Klan did not own much tangible
property. Indeed, of the real estate which Colonel Simmons l
had acquired, on a part of which he had hoped to erect a great
Klan university, little was kept except the enlarged dwelling called
the "Imperial Palace" and the Brown office building, both in
Atlanta. The fact that real property was more easily assessible
for damages at law was doubtless one of the determining factors
in the investment policy of the national officials.

Turning from the imperial revenues to those of the Realm, the
sources were practically the same. The Realm received a part
of the initial "donations," which sum was increased by the in-
come from petitions for higher degrees in the Order. There .
was a Realm tax collected from Klansmen in chartered klans

*See Page 162.

The Organization of the Klan 81

and at times the national office cut back to the Realm office fifty
percent of the imperial tax.

Of each ten dollar donation, the amount retamed by the Realm
was first fixed by imperial decree at one dollar. When money
began pouring into Atlanta, the imperial office grew more gen-
erous toward the Realm and increased the amount allowed the
latter to two dollars. Later, in 1924, this amount was further
increased to $2.25. The Realm also received a commission of
fifty cents on each robe ordered by Pennsylvania Klansmen.

The Realm tax, levied upon all members of chartered klans,
was voted by the state Klorero. A minimum below which this
tax could not be reduced, namely, eight and one-third cents per
month, was fixed by the Constitution of the Order." From the
viewpoint of the Realm officials this constitutional provision was
very wise for the Kloreros never voted more than this minimum.
By 1925 this tax had become the largest single source of revenue
for the Realm. This tax and the cut back of imperial tax ac-
counted for more than ninety percent of its reported receipts."
A financial statement « covering a five months period m 1926
showed another source of income which was growing in impor-
tance, namely, the revenue from petitions for the degree of
K-Duo or Knights Kamellia. During the period reported, it
exceeded the income from robes and helmets by eighty percent.

Since no official membership records prior to 1926 are now
available, it is impossible to calculate the probable income of the
Realm with assurance or check the accuracy of the few financial
statements which were released by the Realm authorities. The
audit for the fiscal year of October 1924 to October 1925 showed
a total income of only $44,516.47. This is undoubtedly an under-
statement. Certainly "the naturalization of aliens" had by no
means ceased during this period but no mention is made in this
report of the income from donations. The income from robes
was set down as $1,502.00. If the Realm received fifty cents
commission per robe, such a sum would represent 3,004 members
purchasing robes. If any of these were new members, as most
of them doubtless were, an income from the donations which
they paid should have appeared in the audit.

The way in which this money was spent by the Realm office
was shown by the audit to be as follows :

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

DISBURSEMENTS
Oct. 1924 to Oct. 1925

Salaries $19,438.13

Salary Expense 2,802.39

Office Expense 5,201.76

K-Duo Salaries 3,220.00

K-Duo Expense 2,164.17

Speaking 2,182.44

Legal 1,323.30

Washington Parade 368.75

Harrisburg Parade 502.00

Conneaut Deficit 1,483.40

Investigations 965.28

General Expense 439.85

Refunds Z2>Z.79

TOTAL $40,425.26

The local organizations, unlike that of the Realm, received no
financial aid from the higher administrative divisions of the Klan.
They were obliged to levy their own dues which varied from six
to ten dollars annually per member, and to pass the hat when
funds were low or special activities were undertaken. Many klans
experienced considerable difficulty in collecting dues and taxes
which were payable quarterly in advance. The only members
exempt from this taxation were ministers and a few individuals
who had been members of the Klan of Reconstruction days. For
a member to be in arrears for one quarter automatically suspended
him and took away his privilege of attending any Klan meetings.
To be re-instated such a member must pay up all his back taxes.
The national headquarters were especially urgent that this rule
be kept and compelled each klan to turn in an elaborate quarterly
report.

In the larger klans sufficient dues had to be collected to pay
for the rental of a hall, the maintenance of the equipment neces-
sary for the performance of the ritual, the secretary's salary and
supplies, the traveling expenses of the Exalted Cyclops or other
representatives to the frequent Realm and Provincial meetings,
the construction of crosses, the purchase of dynamite and the many
other expenses incidental to their activities. Nevertheless, the
local dues assessed upon members were usually the smallest item

The Organization of the Klan 83

of expense for the Klansman who travelled for miles to attend
numerous demonstrations and parades, who gave his money for
riot victims and lawyers' fees, for the children's home and for
local charities, who purchased subscriptions to The Kourier Maga^
zine and The Fellowship Forum and bought klan jewelry or
stock in some klan sponsored business venture.

Local klans were often hard pressed to find supplementary
ways to increase their own available funds. One of these was
to charge admission to the grounds when out-of-doors demon-
strations or initiations were held. A twenty-five cent or fifty
cent fee multiplied a thousand or more times was helpful even
if some of it did remain in the pockets of the guards and gate-
keepers. It was likewise discovered that pin money could be
made for the organization by the sale of refreshments, or more
easily, by the sale of concessions for hot dog and ice cream
stands, and booths for the sale of little American flags and pa-
triotic emblems. Of course, if the weather proved inclement and
the crowd disappointing, an anticipated profit was sometimes
turned into considerable loss.

In Philadelphia, excursions on the river were often profitable.
This was true especially when the members of the Women's
Organization were asked to participate. Here also, the Yellow
Dog degree was conferred, as it was in other places, sometimes
as a scheme to bring profit to some Klan leader willing to cap-
italize the curiosity of the unsuspecting, sometimes to bring
needed funds into the treasury of the Klavern. The initiation
required for this degree included a good deal of vulgarity which
most of the initiates enjoyed but which proved distasteful to a
few who, having been asked to share the fun, paid their fifty
cents or dollar and became unwilling actors in rather low comedy.

Some estimate of the amount of money which was taken out
of the communities where klans existed can be made from the
following letter:

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

Scottdale, Pennsylvania
May-2-1928

Mr. Van A. Barrickman,
Pittsburgh, Pa.

Dear Sir,

Enclosed find report of money sent to the State and Na-
tional offices of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan by
Scottdale Klan No. 37. I can be qualified to this amount
as I have receipts and papers to show for same. There is
more but I can not get it as J. A. Kelley our former Kli-
grapp has the records and has gone along with Shaw and
Evans.

379 members when charter was received
4 of these ministers (no charge)

375 members @ $10.00 Klectoken $3,750.00

119 members @ $5.00 (other $5.00 retained by

. No. 37) 595.00

Paid for robes 1,480.00

Imperial Taxes for May and June 1924 'l06.50

Imperial Taxes for July 1924 to July 1925 875.45

State Taxes January 1925 to July 1925 ... 204.43

Imperial Taxes from July 1925 to July 1926 618.90

State Taxes from July 1925 to July 1926 . . 339.66

Imperial Taxes from July 1926 to July 1927 467.45

State Taxes from July 1926 to July 1927 . . 256.92

Lilly Fund 186.50

TOTAL $8,880.81

There is more of the Lilly Fund, Abbott Fund, Pittsburgh
Dispatch and others of which I cannot get the records.

Very truly yours,
(Signed) James A. Miller, Acting E. C.
Scottdale Klan No. 37

Attest : —

(Signed) Ira B. Ritenour, Kligrapp,
Scottdale Klan No. 37

This brief account of the organization of the Klan reveals a
highly centralized, far from democratic Order to whose little
known higher officials Pennsylvania Klansmen gave liberally of
personal loyalty and of financial support. Prior to 1930 the
money paid by Pennsylvania Klansmen in fees and taxes to sup-
port their local, state and national organizations was at least

The Organization of the Klan

$5 000,000.00 and certainly their activities involved additional in-
direct expenditures of considerably more than that sum. Perhaps
the enjoyment, the excitement, the general psychological benefit
derived by members was worth the money. Totalling up the
objective results in community betterment and balancing them
against the financial expenditures made by the Klansmen, one
is inclined to say that the cost was high.

References

cilium, meeting of May 1 and 2, 1923, P- 13-

2. Article 6, Section 3.

3. Article 6, Section 2.

4. Article 16, Section 2.

5. Article 18, Section 10.

6. Article 5

7. Article 7, Sections 2, 6.

8. Article 1, Section 2.

9. Article 10, Section 5.

10. Article 10, Section 10.

11. Article 10, Section 9.

12. Article 6, Section 1.

13. Article 6, Section 3-

14. Article 10, Section 3.

15. Article 10, Section 6.

16. Article 10, Section 3.

17. Article 10, Section 2.

18. Article 10, Section 12.

19. Article 10, Section 1.

20. Article 9, Section 2.

21. Article 9, Section 1.

22. Article 16, Section 2.

23. Article 18, Section 17.

24 Article 16, Section 2. .

25. ' Estimate of H. K. Ramsey, Imperial Kligrapp.

26. Article H, Section 6. ..ifi.,„ie', Pledae of Loyalty" submitted by Harry A.
!i:{^J!rd \7\ llea'gle ^IftVuired fo execute^ i? and who testified to its
authenticity.

^9 Kfansmln-UckUn/of the Imperial Klazik's office as reported in the mimeographed
minutes of the State Klorero, Dec. 6, 1924, p. 6.

30. Article 20, Section 2.

31. Article 20, Section 18.

II ^;'nsdtut?on':nd°law; of the Klavaliers of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan of the

State of Pennsylvania. Article 3, Section 2-
34 Enlistment Paper, Pennsylvania Klavaliers (official).
35'. Klavalier Constitution, Article 1, Section 5.

36. Ibid. Article 6, Section 3, Supplement B.

37. Ibid. Article 2.

38. General Order No. 1, October 31, 1924.

39 Klavalier Constitution, Article 1, Sectiori i.

40 Ibid. Article 6, Sections 2 3 and supplement, paragraph a

41 For example, see the address of Klansman O. H. Curry, Minutes

43. l??nS o^X^l^l^htsJ^ thV iu ^^^Z to September

frr9'^5\^"sigrd'by ^'j>be^"feunT'"/ud^o^,^rd^?m't: Aich\%mperial\epre.
45. Signed'by H. K. Ramsey, Trustee, and covering a period from February 16 to June

30, 1926.

CHAPTER 6
The Klan and Klansmen : Fraternalism

"I swear that I will be faithful in defending and
protecting the home, reputation and physical and
business interests of a Klansman and that of a
Klansman's family. I swear that I will at any time
without hesitating go to the assistance or rescue of
a Klansman in all things honorable." From Section
IV of the Oath of Allegiance.

"W e appreciate the intrinsic value of a real practical
fraternal relationship among men of kindred thought,
purpose and ideals and the infinite benefits accruable
therefrom, and we shall faithfully devote ourselves
to the practice of an honorable Clanishness that the
life and living of each may be a constant blessing to
others." —From the Ku Klux Klan Kreed.

Fraternalism was a principle which was emphasized again and
again in the literature of the Order. While many members of
other fraternal societies enlarged their social contacts by joining
the Klan, it is more significant that considerable numbers of
men found in the Klan their one fraternal home. It was their
lodge and their service club. They attended its meetings, ex-
changed with other Klansmen the mystical SOG, and discussed
the status of the nation and the morals of their community. It
enabled them, when visiting some other town, to give the secret
sign and when recognized, enter into fraternal conversation with
persons who ceased to be strangers because, like themselves, they
held citizenship in the Invisible Empire. It enhanced their sense
of power. Dignified both by numbers and by what were felt
to be defensible aims and high ideals, furnished by its founder
with a high-sounding ritual and suitable regalia, and equipped
with secret countersigns, handclasps and pass-words, the Klan
became a common man's club. That it brought relief from the
dull monotony of routine existence for the residents of many
a spiritless community cannot be successfully controverted.

The Klan and Klansmen

A substantial expression was given to the fraternal spirit by
the social and recreational activities of the Order. The regular
meetings were not without recreational value. There was dra-
matic activity in donning their robes and participating m the
opening ritual. There was purpose in creating a commendable
degree-team and pride in listening to it and having it ca led to
perform initiatory rites in other Klaverns. There was the ex-
hilarating by-play that characterizes a group of men m their
moments of relaxation.

Moreover, basket picnics, spelling bees, debates, boat trips and
various social gatherings to many of which the Women of the
Ku Klux Klan were cordially invited served as a welcome
diversion and consequently were frequently planned. Klaverns
in the "Pennsylvania Dutch" sections of the state reported numer-
ous enjoyable sauerkraut dinners and goat roasts which became
occasions not only for speeches from Provincial and Realm of-
ficers but also for sleight of hand performances and for the best
joke tellers of the Klaverns to tell their tales. The frequent
"demonstrations" were simply glorified picnics with visitors ga-
lore, speakers, stunts, parades and refreshments.

The summer months were filled with these.^ The records for
1927 are most complete in this regard and while the Klan was
by no means as strong then as earlier nor its demonstrations as
numerous, there were held on July 23d six such affairs.* On
August 6th three were held concurrently at Lewistown, at Mid-
deltown, and at Reading. On August 20th five others were
held.** Some of the demonstrations lasted for three consecutive
days and Klansmen from neighboring Klaverns usually turned
out en mass to help celebrate.

The Realm office gave these picnics publicly in the circular
letters which were periodically sent to local Klaverns. Exalted
Cyclops were expected to urge Klansmen to attend. The larger
and the more enthusiastic the gathering, the more it would build
morale, the bigger would be the profits from refreshment booths
or from the sale of concessions and the more successful it would
be from the standpoint of publicity.

*Held at Peabrook, Indiana. Portage, Hustontown. Lykens and Pitcairn.
* 'At Benezett, Irwin, Wyalusing, Kingston and Red Lion.

88 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

Waynesboro Klan advertised one such occasion as a three day
"field meet" with a "great regalia parade," a "mammoth fireworks
display and sports of all kinds." Admission was 25 cents. On
September 3, 1927 the Carnegie Klan charged 50 cents admission
to a great demonstration with "fireworks, band concerts, singing
and sports." The following is a typical program of one of the
less elaborate affairs:^

2 P. M.

Song : America

Prayer

Flag Raising

Star Spangled Banner

Address: George Strayer, Dayton, Ohio

Solo: P. S. Wight

Address: A. B. Taylor, Greensburg, Pa.

4 P. M. Band Concert

5 P. M. Aeroplane v,
Klavalier Drills

7 P. M. Parade

8:30 P. M. Aeroplane

Address: Rev. J. F. Strayer, Latrobe, Pa.

Male Quartet

Address: Rev. Toba, Dallas, Texas
Male Quartet
9 :30 Naturalization
10:30 Fireworks

While the fraternal relationship which developed among Klans-
men as a result of this recreational activity was valuable, it in-
volved no appreciable sacrifice by Klansmen for each other. Did
fraternalism reach deeper and find expression in charitable ac-
tivity? The evidence points to an affirmative answer. Indeed,
if proof is needed that idealism and desire for service were im-
portant elements in the early history of the movement, one need
only review the generosity of the local Klaverns in their charities.
In the first place, they gave generously to their Order with no
strings attached. There were no questions asked at first about
the use to which either their original ten dollar donation or their
quarterly national and realm taxes were put. For at least four
years, i. e. from 1921 to 1925, there did not develop sufficient
demand for the accounting of Realm funds to cause the Realm
office to issue a regular statement of receipts and expenditures.

The Klan and Klansmen

That these monies were chiefly used for the expenses of propa-
gation and not for charities in spite of the emphasis which the
Order put on "klanishness" was generally understood by the
members. But no objection was made.

Local Klaverns were, therefore, chiefly responsible for all
donations which were made to needy Klansmen and for other
benevolences. While the amount of contributions for charitable
purposes was no doubt large, especially during the early period
of enthusiasm, there was little done in an organized or planned
way. There was not a single instance reported to the writer,
with the exception of the Klan Haven project, where an organ-
ized budget covering definitely predicted needs was drawn up.
On the contrary, the giving was haphazard and generally made
to meet immediate requirements. As a consequence it was largely
fortuitous whether adequate provision was made or not. It
depended upon the closeness to payday, upon whether or not other
collections had recently been taken, upon the eft'ectiveness of the
appeal, the popularity of the beneficiary and many other cir-
cumstances. Exalted Cyclops, who have reviewed this phase of
the activity of their Klaverns with the writer, have been frank
to admit that there was Uttle fairness in the way charities had
been distributed. Often the relatively less needy person would
receive more than the individual whose need was great. Klans-
men usually gave without knowing what others of their number
were contributing.

Naturally, the Order tried first to help its own members who
were considered as possessing a first Hen upon the benevolence
of their fellow Klansmen. A regular item on the agenda of
each business session of a local Klonclave was the question asked
by the Exalted Cyclops : "Does any Klansman know of a Klans-
man or a Klansman's family who is in need of financial or
fraternal assistance?"" Klan charities did not, however, end with
aid given to Klansmen. Baskets at Thanksgiving time were dis-
tributed to the needy of the community by many local Klaverns.
Another type of benevolence is illustrated by the Scottdale Klan
which paid the hospital expenses of a child who had been crippled
from infancy. There were instances not a few of Klaverns
which paid back rent of deserving individuals to prevent eviction
and which met the interest on mortgages to prevent foreclosure.

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

It is impossible to estimate quantitatively the amount of this
charity for in many instances no record of collections and hat-
passings was kept. Some Kligrapps (Secretaries) justified this
un-business-like procedure on the ground that it was desirable
to keep donations as secret as possible. If no record was kept,
there would be less possibility that at some future time the
recipient of the gifts would be reminded that he had been an
object of charity. Often the collection was simply turned over
to a committee with no announcement of the amount collected
or accounting from the committee except the report that the col-
lection had been "delivered to the beneficiary as directed."

The obvious looseness of these methods and the abuses which
grew out of them led to a recommendation by the State office
that regular standing committees be appointed and that the whole
matter of charities be put on a sounder basis. Most of the
Klaverns followed the advice and three committees were named
which dealt respectively with welfare, sickness, and funerals or
"lodges of sorrow." The Welfare Committee undoubtedly had
the most responsibility and its members were appointed by the
E. C. presumably "after consultation with the Kludd (chaplain)."
To it were assigned the following duties:

(a) To administer all charity funds of the Klan, includ-
ing the tithe of net local dues that should be set aside for
charity and all freewill offerings for that purpose.

(b) To investigate all cases of need reported, determine
their worthiness and dispense funds as the case may demand
and the money available may permit.

(c) In case other assistance than funds is needed to
report the circumstances to the Klan, requesting such aid
from fellow Klansmen.

(d) To assist Klansmen in need of advice or other aid
during any misfortune.

(e) To report in writing at every meeting. The financial
items in this report shall become a part of the minutes.*

The dissatisfaction arising among Klansmen because of too fre-
quent appeals for free-will offerings at the Klavern meetings was
noted and included with the above recommendations was the ad-
vice that "no such appeal is to be permitted until it has been
approved by the Welfare Committee."

The Klan and Klansmen 91

The Sick Committee had the usual duties of visitation and
responsibility for all floral oflEerings. If they found circumstances
that called for charity, they were instructed to report that fact
to the Welfare Committee and turn the matter over to it.

Upon the Committee of Funerals and Lodges of Sorrow was
placed "responsibility for sympathetic kindness to a bereaved
family for proper honor to the memory of a departed brother,
and fo'r conducting the Funerals and Lodges of Sorrow in such
a manner as to impress upon all the beauty and dignity of Klan-
craft."=^ It, too, could not administer charity but had to summon
the Welfare Committee in case of this need.

Unquestionably this centralization of alms-giving into the hands
of a single committee which was obliged to investigate requests
and "report in writing" to the Klavern was a needed reform. It
was proof that the Order had passed from its first crusading
phase into its second commercialized phase. The ugly charge
of misappropriation or misuse of funds had been made and too
often now the leaders considered their positions not as posts of
honor which permitted them to render gratuitous service but as
jobs in which there was the possibility of profit.

Klan charities, as far as the writer could determine, were made
to persons rather than institutions. Unlike the Service Clubs,
Rotary and Kiwanis, local Klans rarely gave to organizations, not
even to Boy Scouts, Red Cross, Community Chests, City Chanty
boards, or temperance societies. Even when donations were made
to the' Protestant churches, as was frequently the case, the gift
was always presented to a person, usually the pastor. It is obvious
from a study of the donations which they made, that Klansmen
generally were unwilling to give unless the person who received
the gifts knew whence his aid came. To give to another insti-
tution like the Red Cross, they felt, would only be adding to the
prestige of that organization since it would control the distribu-
tion of the bounty. The Klan was not interested in any second
handed charity. If the boys and girls should be helped, the Klan
felt it better to establish its own Junior Order than to contribute
to the Scouts. If charity was needed, the Klan believed it should
make its own distribution rather than work through or cooperate
with the Organized Charity boards or Community Chests. If
Klansmen in their own giving tried to follow the biblical injunc-

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

tion not to let their left hand know what their right hand had
given, it is far more evident that they tried to make sure that
the individual recipients and the public in general knew who
their benefactor was so that due acknowledgment could be given.

There were two special funds which the Pennsylvania Klan
raised in behalf of its own people which are significant in an
evaluation of the charitable activities of the Order. They were
designated as the Abbott fund and the Lilly fund. As previously
mentioned (ante p. 52), a riot occurred in the fall of 1923
at Carnegie when an attempt was made to prevent a parade of
Klansmen. In the confusion incident to that affair Thomas
Abbott had been shot and subsequently died, leaving a widow
and one small child with no funds to provide for them. Clearly
this was a case when Klansmen were obligated to come to the
assistance of a Klansman's family. A collection was taken on the
night of the murder, the exact amount of which was not reported.
Since the Imperial Wizard was present, the money was turned
over to his office and was later increased by special offerings.
Mrs. Abbott did not live long after her husband's death and
received scant attention from Atlanta. One, Minnie Behling, of
McDonald, Pa., was given custody of the child, Thomas Abbott,
Jr., and, according to her testimony, received for a time $30.00
a month from the National treasurer. But Pennsylvania Klans-
men were never given an accurate accounting of this fund and
never knew how much of the money reached the family for
whom it was given.

Another riot at Lilly, Pa., had resulted in several deaths, in
much litigation and a great deal of hardship for the families of
the Klansmen who served jail sentences as a consequence. Another
fund was set up, this time by the State office and a committee,
with H. C. Woods as chairman, was made responsible for it.
Numerous appeals to local Klansmen over the state brought in,
by November, 1924, some $34,1 56.« The greatest single disburse-
ment reported was for litigation. The attorneys received $18,355,
more than twice as much as was spent for relief of Klansmen
and their families ($8,999.46). For printing and special stenog-
raphers the outlay was $3,023.86 while court costs and witness
fees and costs of investigation totaled nearly $3,000. Sufficient
irregularities in this matter had occurred to cause considerable

The Klan and Klansmen

editing of the minutes of the Klorero before they could safely
be circulated to the different Klaverns, so the matter is not alto-
gether clear. Quite evidently, however, the fund was not pri-
marily a charity to aid distressed Klansmen. The fund was
raised largely by an appeal for charity but, as the above figures
show, was used by the State organization to pay for expensive
litigation in an attempt to clear the name of the Order.*

The most commendable charitable undertaking for which the
Order was responsible was the Klan Haven project— a home for
needy and homeless children. Initiated by the women of the Ku
Klux Klan, it was supported by both the men's and women's
organizations and eventually was placed under joint control.
Speakers were hired to make appeals and to gather money. A
regular annual Klavern meeting was set apart by the men's
organization— the meeting immediately preceding Thanksgiving—
as Klan Haven meeting and contributions taken to meet current
expenses. Various special methods were used such as the raising
of a mile of pennies with various Klaverns competing for the
honor of raising the largest portion of the mile. A regular Klan
Haven visitation day was established in midsummer when caravans
from various parts of the state met in Harrisburg, on the grounds
of the Home. A special program of speakers, of Klavalier drills,
of games and entertainment added attraction and helped to pub-
licize the Home. The original stone dwelling was destroyed by
fire but money was raised to rebuild it. At the peak of its ac-
tivities, forty-one children, chiefly of Klansmen. were housed and
provided for at Klan Haven. Some of the children had been
committed by court order and the State helped with the mainte-
nance expenses in these instances. Indeed steps were taken to
secure court orders in as many cases as possible and Mr. Pmchot's
administration was interested in the home and cooperated to this
end.

In the minds of many Klansmen the obligation of fraternal
assistance was interpreted to include commercial patronage of
business enterprises operated by fellow citizens of the Order.
Undoubtedly the class loyalty engendered by the Klan led to

*Some money was withdrawn from the Lilly fund to pay the hospital expenses of cer-
tain Pennsylvania Klansmen who had been wounded . m the not at Niles Oh o.
A special collection amounting to Sli:'6.00 was taken m the Klorero for the family
of L. P. Bailes, Greenville, Pa., who had died as a result of this same not.

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

considerable discrimination against Jewish, Catholic and foreign
born business men. This benefited the Protestant, Gentile,
nativist group but only where the mass of people were in the
latter classification. Retaliatory discrimination by the non-
nativist group was often used with effect where that group was
numerous, as the Klansmen in Latrobe and Patton — to mention
but two instances — found to their sorrow.'

But the question remained : Should Klansmen buy of Klans-
men rather than of other native born Protestants? Fear that
such a result would actually obtain led not a few business men
to join the Order for security. Jewelers, for instance, who wished
to sell insignia to Klansmen took pains to join so that they could
push their sales as brothers. Other Klansmen with their own
business interests at heart wanted to use the Klavem rolls as
mailing lists and exploit the value that lay in fraternal appeal.
Other Klansmen dreamed of companies which would have a
monopoly on the sale of certain articles to Klansmen. The Gates
City robe factory enjoyed such a monopoly and made enormous
profit. The American Printing and Manufacturing Company at
Atlanta was similarly managed by insiders. In Pennsylvania a
group of Klan business men in and around Pittsburgh conceived
the possibilities of putting on the market a specially wrapped
candy with the Klan insignia prominently stamped on it. It was
felt that Klan loyalty would build a regular market outside the
practically guaranteed sales at the Klan demonstrations and picnics
and make a handsome profit for the promoters. Some $5,000
worth of stock was sold for the proposed scheme when the de-
clining fortunes of the Order in Western Pennsylvania turned
hopes of income into actual loss for the investors.

In this same connection it is interesting to know that another
economic possibility of fraternalism did not go unnoticed. A proj-
ect was initiated by "Judge" James A. Comer, an Imperial
officer, to organize a National Service Club within the Ku Klux
Klan. The Club might be joined by any Klansman who for an
annual service charge — reputed to have been set at $36 — would
receive national advertising and national cooperation for mutual
business interests throughout all the Klavems of the Nation.*
Agents of the Club were appointed in Pennsylvania* and sup-

The Klan and Klansmen

plies and information were distributed when unknown but easily
surmisable circumstances caused the abandonment of the project.

Similarly motivated was the Empire Mutual Life Insurance
Company which was chartered under the laws of Missouri and
acquired by certain Klansmen who saw in the venture a hope
of profit. Members of other lodges such as the Maccabees and
the Odd Fellows supported the insurance departments of their
Orders and the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan might be expected
to do no less. Moreover, as far as fraternal insurance was con-
cerned, Klansmen represented a virtually unworked clientele with
great faith in anything labeled with the Klan name or symbolism
and a lively zeal to promote the Order.

This Klan subsidiary began its activities in 1924, duly heralded
in the columns of the Kourier Magazine:

"Some facts regarding the Empire Mutual Life Insurance
Company of Kansas City, Missouri :

No. 1. This company is an Old Line Legal Reserve Mutual

Stock Companv.
No. 2. All of its stock is owned by, and is being held m

trust for. the National Headquarters of the Knights

of the Ku Klux Klan, Inc.
No. 3. This company was unanimously approved by the

Second Imperial Klonvokation held in Kansas City,

Missouri, September 23 to 26, inc., 1924.
No. 4. This company writes none but native born, White,

Gentile, American citizens."

While some millions of insurance was written by this Company,
its activities were largely confined to the states of Missouri,
Arkansas, Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas.^" There was little
solicitation made in Pennsylvania until 1927. In that year the
Imperial Wizard circularized the Klans in its behalf urging the
members to purchase their protection in a white, Gentfle, Prot-
estant Corporation. By that date, however, the Klansmen of
Pennsylvania, remembering the failure of Daily Dispatch Pub-
lishing Company, the Flowers Product Company and similar
enterprises, were skeptical of all of the commercial affiliates of
the Order and considered this just another money grabbing
proposition.

The idea that the Klan as a fraternal organization could aid
its members financially received attention from some of the local

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

branches during the heyday of the Order as well as from the
State and National officials. The Klan at Irwin is an instance.
Convinced that their Order was "the biggest thing in America"
with hundreds of thousands of members in Pennsylvania alone,
and believing that Klansmen would "stick together," the members
at Irwin decided to invest in one of the leading hotels in the town.
They felt that they would have the guaranteed patronage of their
brother Klansmen, many of whom would stop at Irwin as they
travelled the Linclon highway or the main line of the Pennsyl-
vania Railroad. The prospect of profit seemed rosy.^^

At Scottdale, the same hope of financial gain led to the pur-
chase of the Shupe farm adjacent to the borough on the north.
Part of this farm they expected to turn into a permanent home
for their Klavern and the remainder, they hoped to sell as lots at
a substantial profit. Similar projects were undertaken at Indiana
and at Lancaster. Unfortunately for the Klansmen who invested
in stock or made donations, these enterprises turned out just as
badly as had the more spectacular Publishing Company. The
combination of declining membership and economic depression
were disastrous. Stoically accepting their losses, the Klansmen
who remained gave up the economic phases of fraternalism and
spent their time planning how their local Klan could assist them
to have a good time on Friday nights.

References

1. Practically every issue of "The Kourier Magazine" carried under the heading "Penn-
sylvania Notes" accounts of such affairs.

2. Held at Scottdale, Pennsylvania, August 28, 1926. The quotations made in ref-
ence to the Waynesboro and Carnegie Demonstrations were taken from printed hand-
bills of these affairs.

3. Mimeographed "Instructions for Exalted Cyclops: Standard Plans for the Organi-
zation and Operation of Klans in Pennsylvania, 1925."

4. Pamphlet F — 102, (American Printing and Manufacturing Company, Atlanta) en-
titled, "The Klan in Action," p. 14.

5. Ibid; p. 15.

6. Mimeographed minutes of the State Klorero, Dec. 7, 1924, p. 20.

7. In Latrobe the Lutherans suffered more than others because of their alleged support
of the Klan ; among them Dave Griffith, optometrist and Kate Weiss, milliner.
In Patton, the boycott was more general on all Protestants, according to the
Methodist Episcopal minister, W. A. Graham. Although the boycott was rather
rigidly maintained while it lasted, in the most instances it was rather temporary.
Few cases were reported after 1926.

8. Correspondence of Mrs. Mary I. Goodwin to Rev. Strayer (Feb. 1928).

9. Dan Ensminger of Hershey was one such agent.

10. Proceedings of the Second Imperial Klonvokation. p. 132 ff.

11. Told the writer in interview with Irwin Klansmen.

12. Told the v/riter in interviews with the Exalted Cyclops and Kligrapp of the Scott-
dale Klavern.

CHAPTER 7
The Klan and the State: Political Activities

"People vote their resentment, not their apprecia-
tion. The average man does not vote for anything,
hilt against something."— William Bennett Munro

Political historians have frequently assumed that an organiza-
tion is important to the extent that it wields political power.
This point of view has some justification in the fact that most
organizations which have gained power, whether by virtue of
numbers of wealth, have used that power to control the processes
of government in behalf of their own interests. Modern govern-
ments exercise such vast authority over the life of their respective
peoples that no institution representing well defined interests can
afford to neglect the possible benefits which the government might,
with sufficient pressure, be influenced to bestow.

Moreover, it is quite possible, under the democratic processes
extant in America, for small groups, well organized as blocs, to
wield inordinate power. This is especially true when a general
issue divides the voting public almost equally between the two
major political parties. Minority blocs whose special interests are
paramount to the major issues which split the mass of voters,
then hold a balance of power and are able to play one party
against the other for concessions.

The Klan leaders were not blind to this fact. As one of them
said: "Everybody knows that politicians nowadays cater to all
kinds of 'elements' mostly selfish, some corrupt, and some defi-
nitely anti-American. They cater to the German vote, the Catho-
lic vote, the Jewish vote, the Italian vote, the boot-leg vote, the
vice vote, and sometimes even to the violently criminal vote. What
the Klan intends to do is to make them pay some attention to
the American vote, the Protestant Christian vote, and the decent,
God-fearing, law-abiding vote."^

98 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

This "God-fearing, Protestant Christian" group had special in-
terests of its own. FeeHng that they possessed property rights
in their country's culture by the laws of heredity, they wanted to
enforce a kind of entail upon it. This claim was candidly stated
by the Imperial Wizard himself:

"We believe that the pioneers who built America bequeathed to
their own children a priority right to it, the control of it and of
its future, and that no one on earth can claim any part of its
inheritance except through our generosity."^

Klansmen made no apology for this claim. The legalistic as-
sumptions current since the breakdown of the feudal system sup-
ported it. It was as sound certainly as the right of a son, re-
gardless of competency, to inherit his father's fortune. Mr.
Evans, moreover, refused to admit the possibility of incompetency
on the part of the native American inheritors.

"We believe," he continued, "that the American stock, which
was bred under highly selective surroundings . . . and should
not be mongrelized, . . . automatically and instinctively de-
veloped a kind of civilization which is best suited to its own
healthy life and growth; and that this cannot be safely changed
except by ourselves and along the lines of our own character."^

This assertion was tantamount to a claim by the nativists
within America that they did legally and should in practice have
the right to control and develop the country's civilization. The
Klan refused to argue about this dogma. Like the Trinity, it
was accepted on faith and the orthodoxy of anyone's "American-
ism" was denied if he questioned it. The Klan made no pretense
of serving any group which did not accept this as "an instinctive
belief" and staked its success upon the theory that it was the
conviction of "the great mass of Americans of the old stock."

Now the right to direct the country's civilization necessarily
included the control of its political processes. The Klan's poHtical
slogan, "Put none but Americans on guard" merely expressed a
logical corollary of its article of faith.

While the number of the local Klaverns was still small and the
energies of the leaders were needed to increase membership, little
attention was given to a political program. There were more
exciting and spectacular ways to act. Besides, there was little
chance of poHtical success when only a small number of men

The Klan and the State

belonged to the Order and when success in its undertakings
was essential for its growth, indeed, for its very existence. But,
as the membership grew, political activity rapidly increased. Some
items of the Klan platform, viz, "just laws," "the limkation of
immigration," and "the separation of Church and State," were ad-
mittedly political in nature and inevitably brought the Order into
politics.

Always the Klan worked within the established party organiza-
tions. The political success of the A.P.A. had shown the ad-
vantage of such procedure compared with the establishment of
a separate nativist party like the "American Party" of the 1840's
and 1850's. The fact that Pennsylvania was a strong Republican
state did, however, make the Klan pay particular attention to the
selection of candidates on Republican tickets, especially in the even
years when national officials were elected and straight party vot-
ing was prevalent. In the alternate years when local officials
were selected, the Klan tried to see that the "right" persons were
nominated on the tickets of both parties.

Klan officials protested against assertions that they "controlled"
the votes of Klansmen. "Information" and "advice" was admit-
tedly given but when the Klansman entered his voting booth "his
only compulsion was his conscience." This was, no doubt,
theoretically true. When one considers, however, that the average
Klansman had little opportunity to hear contrasting points of
view or inclination to weigh opposing arguments, those who ad-
vised also controlled many of their votes.

The information usually given out was limited at first to such
items as the candidate's religious affiliation, his place of birth, and
the secret orders to which he belonged. Such information,
although secretly given and hence more easily falsified without
detection, was accurately reported in every instance which the
writer checked. If the candidate was a member of the Knights
of Columbus or had affiliations with the B'Nai B'Rith he was
automatically eliminated. On the other hand, if the candidate for
office was a member of the Masonic fraternity or of a patriotic
order such as the Junior Order of American Mechanics or the
Patriotic Order of the Sons of America, his prestige was in-
creased.

100 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

When the choice lay between the members of the Knights of
Columbus and the Patriotic Order Sons of America, it was of
course easily made. Often, however, the selection had to be made
from candidates all of whom qualified on general grounds. In
such a case the Klan tried to secure the election of the individual
most favorable to the Order. Klan leaders were, nevertheless,
loath to endorse such a person unless he had a good chance of
winning. If a candidate who had received Klan endorsement
was defeated, it meant the loss of prestige for the Order and
Klan officials often preferred to make no recommendation or to
recommend all the candidates unless it could be determined in
advance that one of the candidates was almost certain to win.
Klan caution in this regard was noticeable in connection with the
Prohibition issue. Although its principles pledged Klansmen to
support "law enforcement," in communities where anti-prohibition
sentiment was strong, the Klan avoided open endorsement of
"prohibition candidates" likely to be defeated.

The Order, itself, tried not to become an issue for obvious
reasons. When it was an issue, all the opposition groups — Jews,
Negroes, Catholics, foreigners — united to defeat it. Only if these
groups were divided among themselves on other issues could a
Klan minority, voting secretly as a bloc, attain its nativist ob-
jectives.

Klansmen themselves were frequently candidates for office and
as such claimed the support of the other members since their
obligation "to go to the assistance" of a Klansman in any way "at
his call" was susceptible of broad interpretation even if the quali-
fying phrase "in things honorable" was remembered. Certainly
there was no doubt about the "call." Klansmen travelled about
from Klavern to Klavern in behalf of their own candidacies. In
some cases they sent out their friends to speak in their behalf.
As one Exalted Cyclops confessed, "It got terrible around election
time . . . We had to stop one person who travelled around in
behalf of Dr. Hunter of Monessen. We had to tell Dr. Hunter
to speak for himself. This other fellow was terrible."*

Some difficulty was encountered when more than one ambitious
Klansm; 11 decided to run for the same office. In Texas, the
first state where the Klan was politically strong, a method of
solving this problem was evolved which was also widely adopted

The Klan and the State

101

in Indiana. This method involved the holding of elections within
the Klaverns prior to the regular party primaries. Klansmen then
chose by secret ballot the one candidate to whom the^ entire
strength of the Klan vote was subsequently given. This kept
the Klan vote in a solid block and usually assured the victory of
a Klansman for the office. Wide use of this procedure was not
made in Pennsylvania— one reason, perhaps, why the Klan was
politically less effective here than in either Texas or Indiana.

The secrecy of Klan action made possible the growth of its
political prestige. The Klan gained a reputation in scattered areas
of the state and especially in some of the western counties for
being a potent political force controlling local elections. In some
instances this was true ; in others it was fictitious but the general
public, not knowing the secret endorsements or last minute
changes in recommendations which the Klan might have made,
could not gainsay the claims of political victory which the leaders
regularly made after every election.

Another factor increasing the political strength of the Klan
was the fact that its secrecy made it an incalculable factor in the
political equation to the great dismay of the political bosses.
Since its membership was secret, its voting strength was unknown
and often exaggerated. Local bosses were sometimes frightened
into concessions which they would not have made if they had
known all the facts. The prestige of the political boss also de-
pended upon victory for his party. Bosses, therefore, exercised
care to see that the victors at the party primaries had a good
chance of attracting the floating vote and of bringing victory to
the party in the elections. They were often inhibited from sup-
porting candidates of their own choice if Klan opposition to them
was anticipated. Where the Klan was strong the bosses fre-
quently endorsed Klan candidates, giving them the support of the
party machinery just as the Klan in building up its prestige, often
endorsed the party candidates who were sure to win anyway.
The more astute bosses did not endure this inconvenience for long.
They simply encouraged some of their own henchmen to join
the local Klaverns, and full information in regard to the Klan's
political activities was quickly furnished them.

The Klan not only "advised" its own members but tried also
to swing elections by circulating cards upon which were printed

102 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

the names of candidates endorsed by the local Klavern. The
earliest instance of this which had come to the notice of the writer
was during the fall primaries of 1923 in Westmoreland County.
Heralded as "The People's Choice," and carrying no acknowledg-
ment of their Klan origin, these cards appeared on doorsteps or
in mailboxes on the morning of the election, having been stealthily
placed there during the previous night. This practice was widely
adopted in the smaller boroughs and villages where there was
a rather friendly attitude toward the Order.

There were some districts in which it was found impracticable.
For instance, the Exalted Cyclops of the Hazelwood Klavern in
Pittsburgh admitted that his group engaged in very little political
activity.

"It would have been impossible to do much more than
influence ward politics so we didn't try. The city was so
large that nothing could be done about city politics by our
group. Everyone had his own friends and it would have
been useless. I remember advising a friend of mine who
was running for office to make his contribution to the
Catholic Church. That was the wise thing to do anyway in
this ward. But it got out that he was a Klansman and he
lost."^

Most Klaverns, however, found in local political activities the
most successful expression of their power.

When the inquiry turned toward the end to which the Klan
used its political strength, the answer was disappointing. The
Klan goal was generally a negative one. Seldom was a construc-
tive program of community improvement set up by the Klan to-
ward the attainment of which interested persons from all groups
in the community were requested to cooperate. Programs, when
they existed at all, were secondary to personal considerations. A
man's religious affiliation or place of birth were centers about
which political support or hostility revolved.

Religion and birth were, of course, easy to determine — criteria
well suited to the common American with little intellectual acumen
outside the narrow requirements of his occupation. It required
neither power of analysis nor fineness of judgment to determine
a man's religion or his place of birth. It required both to create
and defend a constructive program. But when such Klan criteria

The Klan and the State

103

for political action were criticized as naive and juvenile, Klan
leaders protested. Much more was inferred, they said, than just
the simple statement that a candidate was a foreigner or a
Catholic.

The accident of foreign birth was held to denote an unalterable
deficiency in the ability of an individual to really understand and
truly appreciate American ideals and principles. Since he had
been raised in a different culture, Klansmen held it to be im-
possible for a foreigner to completely lose his old habits and
values. Of course, if he had come to this country in infancy
and had gone through the American public schools, there was
some hope for him; but any such were negligible in number.
Of the great mass of foreigners, Klansmen believed, in the
language of their highest official that,

"It is foolish to expect, and it has been proved wrong by
experience to hope that people of alien education and different
ideals, which are bred into them both by inheritance and their
entire' training can within a few years understand America,
the American Spirit or the American ideals."''

Taken at its face value there was little to be criticized in this
attitude. The fallacy lay in the fact that the stereotyped notion
of foreigners held by most Klansmen made them accept a state-
ment Hke that just quoted as descriptive of all foreigners. No
credit was given to the fact that American education is in many
respects patterned after "alien" education and that while differ-
ing in some of their ideals many aliens were staunch supporters
of other ideals which Klansmen called "American." The fact that
some foreigners were "anti-American" in some of their habits
and ideals was exaggerated into a stereotyped notion which made
all foreigners un-American in every respect.

Then too, Klansmen thought of a Catholic not simply as a
communicant in the Roman Church but as one who placed his
church above his country both in his affection and allegiance. To
have Klansmen who were bred in the tradition of John Calvin
and John Knox, or at least largely influenced by them, make this
condemnation of Roman Catholics sound hypocritical. For, while
most Protestants were willing in practice to let the authority
of state be their conscience, in theory they were forced to demur.^

104

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

What then was the difference ? It was found in the connotation
of the word "Church." Protestant Klansmen, in case the author-
ity of the State was in conflict with what they believed to be
God's will, did not deny that their first obligation was to their
God. This, of course, was exactly what the Catholics meant
when they said that their first obligation, in case of conflict of
authorities, was to their Church, e.g. to God's will as inter-
preted by his own special representatives on earth, "the Church."

Klansmen denied the hypothesis of God's special representa-
tives and held that the pure white light of God's truth was broken
into fantastic colors by the quite human prisms of prelate and
foreign pope. On the other hand, they were themselves stumped
when asked for proof that this white light of truth was trans-
mitted any more perfectly by their own lay consciences, admit-
tedly human also. When the infallibility of both the Roman
hierarchy and the individual Protestant's conscience was waived,
the problem resolved itself into the speculative question of the
relative quantities of truth and light obtainable by the contrast-
ing methods thus supported, a problem insolvable by any known
procedure of mathematics. Only the formulas of faith were ap-
plicable, which left the answer as disputed as ever because faith,
in the respective instances, did not speak the same language. The
Klan formula: "The voice of the native, white, Protestant is the
voice of God for America" was as little acceptable to many people
in America as was "The voice of the Pope, in matters in which
he claims jurisdiction, is the voice of God."

More important than this theoretical problem was a more prac-
tical consideration. The philosophy of Catholicism, with its dogma
of Papal infallibility and its highly centralized form of govern-
ment gave it power unknown to Protestants whose dogmas of
direct communion of the individual with his God and the su-
premacy of the individual conscience were essentially schismatic
and weakening. Time after time Klansmen were reminded : "The
Roman Catholic Church is united and its membership is suscep-
tible to manipulation by the priesthood."®

The Roman Catholic Church, whose doctrine and government
were largely cast during the chaos of the first ten centuries of
our era, naturally found Unity, as a prerequisite to order and
brotherhood, the highest ideal. Division and schism were hand-

The Klan and the State

105

maids of chaos and, as a consequence, "dogmatic intolerance" was
regarded by her "not only as her incontestible right, but as her
sacred duty."®

Protestantism was in a measure the expression of the reaction
against the regulation of life by a "medieval" Church. The ideal
now was found not in Unity but in the contrasting principle
of Liberty. The emotion that attended the discovery that
salvation was the result of faith alone was to many like the wild
joy of a school child liberated at evening from the compulsions
of an officious teacher. It was pleasant to learn that the "inner
light" God had bestowed upon each of his elect was adequate to
vouchsafe God's will for him if he diligently studied His sacred
Word. But if this individualism and freedom of conscience was
Protestantism's greatest joy, it was also the source of its greatest
weakness. Catholic popes had been able to command kings and
guilds. Protestant divines, when they affirmed liberty of con-
science, surrendered much of that power.

This dilemma of Protestantism was still current in America
when the Klan marshalled its members. Loving liberty, unity
was sacrificed. Could the Klan find some method of synthesis
which would preserve both? It boasted of its function as "the
unifying cement of Protestantism. "i"

But unity on a constructive program was manifestly impossible.
Let a national or even a state wide campaign for any specific
political or educational reform be proposed, and Klansmen diflr'ered
about its advisability. Let strict enforcement of the Volstead Act
be advocated, some Klaverns cooperated while others refused their
support.

Like a family whose non-cooperative individualistic members
unite only against complaining outsiders, Klansmen found that
they could really act unitedly only by joining in a crusade against
those outsiders whom they feared were taking advantage of the
weakness Protestants had brought upon themselves by claiming
the right to differ. In its general aspects, therefore, the Klan
program was almost predestined to be negative. Klansmen would
not admit this. Indeed, they were vociferous in its denial : "We
are not anti-Jewish; we are not anti-Negro, we are not anti-
foreigner ; in fact we are not anti-anything. We are simply pro-
American."" Of course no exact line can be drawn between the

106

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

"pro" and "anti" attitudes thus referred to. One does work in
behalf of his own cause when he weakens his opponents, but
Klansmen who called their strictures against Catholics and
foreigners a Pro- American activity, merely refused to recognize
the distinction between "pro" and "anti". This attitude was as
absurd as to take the point of view that advertising slogans like
"Reach for a Lucky instead of a Sweet" are not anti-anything
but essentially positive and justifiable.

In spite of Klan denials which, although illogical, were in most
cases sincere enough, a large part of the Klan's political ac-
tivity was negative. An attempt was made to destroy the political
power and weaken the influence of individuals and groups which
Klansmen considered "un-American." In Pennsylvania this was
chiefly confined to activity against the Catholic Church and all
efforts of its communicants to secure political office or power.*

Every Catholic public official, be he policeman or burgess,
school director or tax collector, councilman or congressman must,
if possible, be turned out of offfce and no Catholics elected. While
Klansmen would not assert that an individual's affiliation with
the Catholic Church pre-determined his beliefs about traffic regu-
lations or tariffs, there was a general feeling that the election
of every additional Catholic to public office would hasten the time
when our government would be turned over to a foreign Pope
for whom indeed a place of residence was already being prepared,
so it was said, within the walls of the Catholic University at
Washington, D. C.

Nor was that fateful day believed to be far distant. Many
Klansmen were convinced that the nation had narrowly escaped
that "catastrophe" during the administration of Woodrov/ Wilson
when (so they asserted) a Catholic shared the White House as
his wife, when Secretary Tumulty, "a Catholic of the Catholics
commanded the entrance to the White House,"^^ when, accord-
ing to widely circulated reports, "over seventy per cent of all
appointments made by President Wilson were Catholics . . .
(and) 62 per cent of all offices in the United States, both elective
and appointive were held by Roman Catholics. "^^ While the

♦When this Catholic factor was not a part of the political setting of a Klavern, its

political efforts were generally frustrated by factional struggles between Klansmen for

ofSce or else the Klavern was merely an acljunct to the dominant political party in its
locality.

The Klan and the State

107

worst of their predictions had not yet been fulfilled, The Grand
Dragon of Pennsylvania warned all "faithful and esteemed Klans-
men" that the Roman Hierarchy was still "determined to present
our fair country as a gift to the Pope of Rome."^*

Although Klansmen were never very clear about the ef¥ect such
an eventuality would have upon our institutions generally, the
belief was commonly held among them that four things would
result. In the first place, they believed that the CathoHcs,
wherever they secured a controlling influence in the American
government, would use the agencies of government to strengthen
the Catholic Church and that government funds would be ap-
propriated to support the Catholic parochial schools. Thus the
American principle of the separation of church and state would
be abandoned.

In the second place, Klansmen feared that the institution of
civil marriage would be in danger. This they inferred from the
fact that the Catholic Church refused to recognize the validity
of the civil ceremony for the marriage of its communicants.

Third, whether or not facts could be gathered which , showed
that American Catholics had been tolerant of other Christian
denominations, it was held that the ruling "hierarchy" of the
Roman Church had never accepted tolerance as a principle, but
only as a temporary policy which the peculiar circumstances in
America made necessary.

Finally, Klansmen believed that the philosophy of the Roman
Church, elevating as it does the authority of the Pope, was not
democratic but autocratic and, when Catholics claimed that "papal
infallability" was only claimed for utterances made ex-cathedra
on matters of faith and morals and did not extend to political
matters, Klansmen refused to believe them. In the words of
Grand Dragon H. C. Shaw, "the teachings of the Roman Catholic
Church are fundamentally hostile to the spirit, ideals, and insti-
tutions of our Republic"^* which made it unwise to have persons
brought up under this doctrine in public office here in America.

Such beliefs were repeatedly expressed in local Klaverns and
acted upon in elections with the result that Catholic candidates
for local offices were defeated in many parts of the state. In
national politics the presidential campaign of 1928 was the most
evident case of Klan pressure to defeat a Catholic for office.

108 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

Prior to that campaign, the state ofifice of the Kian had taken
little interest in politics of a state wide or national character.
While Sam D. Rich was King Kleagle (or Imperial Representa-
tive) his own lack of interest in politics was reflected by virtually
all the state officers. There is considerable evidence to show that
Gifford Pinchot received favorable endorsement by many local
Klaverns and Lemuel D. Peoples of the State Office took some
interest in the success of his candidacy presumably with the con-
sent of his superiors.* In the presidential campaign of 1924,
there was little if any efifort made against the Democratic candi-
date, John W. Davis, even though he denounced the Klan by
name in his speech at Sea Girt, New Jersey, on August 22. More
effort was made to discourage Pennsylvania Klansmen from sup-
porting the candidacy of Robert M. LaFollette. On October 6
and 7, 1924, at Conneaut Lake Park was held the largest Klan
gathering in the state immediately prior to the election of that
year. Time was taken on that occasion by both Sam D. Rich
and Imperial Wizard Evans to denounce LaFollette as a radical
and to predict turmoil and disaster if he were elected president.

Against the candidacy of Alfred E. Smith the Klan put forth
the most vigorous political effort of its career in Pennsylvania.
The leadership of the Pennsylvania realm had passed by that
time from Rich — and several temporary incumbents — to Rev.
Herbert C. Shaw, an ex-Methodist minister from the South who
had served a short pastorate in Erie, Pennsylvania. He was an
outspoken anti-Catholic and, unlike Rich, was much interested in
national politics. The correspondence from Shaw's ofifice began,
early in 1927. to prepare for the coming presidential struggle.
■'What is the Ku Klux Klan's next great battle?" he wrote in
March of that year, and emphatically answered, "The battle to
prevent the Roman hierarchy from seating Mr. Al Smith in the
Presidential chair."

Programs for Klavern meetings were suggested by the State
office. Catechetical exercises were prepared and sent out contain-
ing references to the recent Eucharistic Congress at Chicago and
the celebration of High Mass on the Sesqui Centennial grounds
at Philadelphia. The one was "the Roman Catholic Hierarchy's"

•In correspondence with Mr. Pinchot he declined either to corroborate or deny this
allegation.

The Klan and the State

109

western background for the Al Smith candidacy, the other its
eastern background "calculated to over-awe (these sections) by a
display of numerical strength." " To arouse the fears of earnest
Klansmen, thev were told that Smith had many advantages m
the coming election. "The Roman Catholic Church controls to
a great extent the press of the country." Multitudes of Repub-
lican Catholics would support Mr. Smith because "their love of
Church will supplant love of party." The Ku Klux Klan was the
only organization which stood boldly out against "Romanism
and "nullification" to stem the tide. Solemn warning was given
of the consequences of Mr. Smith's election: "It is a foregone
conclusion that he will remove every Protestant from office that
he can safely remove and put a Knight of Columbus in his place
. Without doubt he will seek occasion to use the armed forces
of our Country ro restore the Roman Catholic yoke to the neck
of the Mexican People." "Why is the Ku Klux Klan opposed
to Mr. Smith for President?" concludes the catechism, and as if
summarizing all the long list of reasons the answer is given:
because being a Catholic, he is "subservient to and dominated by
the Papacy."

The Democratic convention at Houston, faced with the fact
that Smith was the strongest man of the party, succumbed to
his nomination as inevitable and whipped up their courage by
stoutly asserting the historic liberalism of the party and by roundly
applauding speeches like that of Senator Robinson who shouted,
"Jefferson glorified in the Virginia Statute of rehgious freedom.
He rejoiced in the provision of the constitution that declares no
religious test shall be required as a qualification for an office of
trust in the United States." " Democratic Klansmen who found
themselves powerless at Houston were not as helpless m their
local communities. Imperial Wizard Hiram W. Evans, the head
of the national organization, transferred his base of operations
from Atlanta to Washington, D. C, and with an mcreased staff
directed the fight against Smith's election. Since Republican voters
in Pennsylvania outnumbered Democratic voters more than 5.b
to 1 less effort was concentrated upon Pennsylvania than on
New York State. On the other hand, high powered orators like
Senator Heflin. of Alabama, were brought into Pennsylvania and
large audiences were harangued. Grand Dragon Shaw denounced

110

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

the Catholics on every appropriate occasion making much mention
of the political designs of the "hierarchy" which he professed to
have learned at the Chicago Eucharistic Congress into which he
claimed he had gained entrance disguised as a priest. A special
effort was made to get Klansmen to subscribe personally to the
vitriolic Fellowship Forum and, when this effort failed to secure
the hoped for circulation, to get the local Klaverns to use some
of their monies to purchase copies for free distribution.

When the election returns were in and Herbert Hoover had
gained the presidency by a substantial majority, the Klan was
loud in its claim that it had saved the country from a papist. A
survey of the returns in Pennsylvania is sufficient commentary
upon the revelance of this claim in this state. It must be remem-
bered, of course, that while Pennsylvania had some 225,000 to
300,000 Klansmen enrolled in the Order at its peak, by 1928
(April) that number had shrunk to a mere 26,000 and continued
to decrease during the year. The counties listed in the table
below are counties in which the Klan had been strong and, in
several instances, was still strong. The figures in parenthesis
listed under the 1928 columns are the votes cast for the guber-
natorial candidates : Reed on the Republican ticket and McNair
on the Democratic ticket. They are included because they offer
a slight check on the presidential vote.

Table "

1924:

Democratic

Republican

Per cent of

County
Allegheny . .
Westmoreland
Philadelphia
Schuylkill . .

(Harding)

149,296
34,522

347,457
34,578
46,475
22,315
20,826
23,044

(Davis)
21,984
10,223
54,213
10,111
14,500
6,706
10,415
15,600

total vote

12.8
22.8
13.4
22.8
23.7
23.1
33.3
40.3

Luzerne . .
Washington
Lehigh . . .
York ....

The Klan and the State

111

1928:

Republican
Hoover-
County (Reed)
Allegheny .... 215,678

(212,976 Reed)
Westmoreland 51,760

(47,500 Reed)
Philadelphia . . 420,320

(412,747 Reed)

Schuylkill .... 46,033

(45,512 Reed)
Luzerne 67 ,872

(66,869 Reed)
Washington .. 31,099

(28,991 Reed)
Lehigh 40,291

(37.643 Reed)
York 45,791

(36,602 Reed)

Democratic
Smith Per cent of
(McNavr) total vote
160,733 45.3
(144,855 McNair)

30,587 37.1
(29,270 McNair)

276,573 39.6
(259,819 McNair)

40,424 46.1
(37,350 McNair)

73,319 51.9
(68,299 McNair)

17,149 35.5
(16,966 McNair)

13,463 25.0
(14,237 McNair)

11,215 19.8
(17,512 McNair)

It will be obser^^ed from these figures that in York and Lehigh
Counties where the percentage of Catholic population was small,
the increase in Republican votes was much greater than the in-
crease in Democratic votes. It is quite evident, also, that in
every section in which there was a substantial Catholic group,
the effect of the campaign had been to increase the Smith vote
by a much larger percentage than the Hoover vote. It is, of
course, impossible to determine how much of the increase in the
Republican vote was due to the Klan activity in getting out the
Protestant vote, or, on the other hand, how much the Klan was
responsible for stirring Catholics to activity and enhancing the
Smith vote. That it was as potent in the latter regard as it was
in the former is open to little doubt.

A narrower investigation of the election returns of smaller
districts where flourishing Klaverns existed shows precisely the
same result."

112 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

Votes Polled by the Presidential Candidates

1924 1928

Town Republican Democratic Republican Democratic

Altoona 8,687 2,146 13,718 7,297

Bedford* 756 510 901 312

Carnegie 1,684 245 2,099 1,928

Homestead 2,277 190 1,480 4,141

Indiana 2,810 404 3,481 645

McKeesport ... 6,303 1,095 8,534 5,173

Mt. Pleasant .. 824 327 1,214 868

Shamokin 4,279 1,388 5,912 3,555

York* 8.275 4,020 14,246 4,554

*These places had relatively few Catholics.

The Pennsylvania Klan made but one attempt to introduce a
legislative program into the State Legislature. This took place
when a battery of four bills were prepared by the Order and
introduced into the Assembly by Representative George G. Weber,
of DuBois, on February 21, 1927. While these bills died in the
Committee on Judiciary General to which they were referred,
their content is descriptive of the focal points of Klan poHcy.
Three of the four bills were directed against the Catholic Church
and its subsidiary organizations. The first would by one direct
blow have made the organization of Knights of Columbus and
certain other Catholic Orders and Associations impossible by
making it a felony punishable by from one to ten years hard
labor in the State Penitentiary to hold membership "in any secret
oath-bound corporation, association or society organized within
this Commonwealth when the qualifications to membership is
membership also in either a corporation, association or society
whose seat of government is in a foreign country or whose chief
executive officer is not a citizen of the United States."

A second bill proposed to stop criticism of civil marriage —
presumably by Catholics — by making it a misdemeanor "punish-
able by a fine of $300 to $1000 and imprisonment of three: to
twelve months to question the validity or the sanctity of any
marriage or to reflect upon the morality of the marital state or
to deny the legitimacy of the issue of any marriage when such
marriage has been or is about to be entered into and solemnized
in accordance with the statutes of this Commonwealth or of any
other State." The third bill also related to marriage. Any per-

The Klan and the State

113

son qualified to perform the marriage ceremony was forbidden to
"persuade, entice or induce said parties (to the marriage) to
enter into any contract, agreement, or stipulation, oral or ni
writing, to educate or train the issue of said marriage accordmg
to the teachings or tenets of any particular church, sect, religion,
or belief." The last of the Klan bills showed the attitude of the
Klan toward the question of inter-marriage between the Negroes
and whites. Such inter-marriage was, by the terms of the bill,
"forever prohibited." It was made a felony for any minister or
other authorized official to unite any such persons in marriage,
on penalty of a maximum fine of $5,000 and a maximum im- .
prisonment of five years.

A number of Klansmen in the Assembly credited the failure to
secure the passage of this legislation to the lack of skill on the
part of the sponsor of the bills. It is true that he had little ability
and no experience in handling matters of this kind. But even if
the sponsorship of these bills had been in difTerent hands, there
was little hope of pushing through measures which were so
discriminatory. Besides, there was insufficient Klan strength in
the Assembly to make it worthwhile for other "interests" to bar-
gain with the Klansmen.

Turning to national affairs, the Klan took some interest in
immigration restriction and claimed a considerable share of the
glory for the passage of the Immigration Act of 1924. There is
little evidence, however, that the Pennsylvania organization took
an active part in the matter. Senator James Reed, of Pennsyl-
vania, sponsored the bill in the Senate and would certainly have
been familiar with interested groups which might have given him
support. Reed asserts, however, that he was not aware of any
support given to the measure by the Klan in Pennsylvania, nor,
for that matter, by a Klan lobby at Washington.^"

The Klan did directly oppose our entrance into the League of
Nations and World Court. Klan membership reflected the nor-
mally isolationist attitude and the fears of the average Americans
that we would be drawn into entangling alliances. Characteris-
tically, however, the reasons given by Klansmen were primarily
neither economic nor political. It was the predominance of
Catholic countries in the League and World Court and the con-
sequent dangers to American Protestantism that made them bad.

114

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

The Realm Office circularized its members and urged them to pur-
chase folders for distribution in public places. One of these cir-
culars, identified as Leaflet No. 4 in the correspondence of the
Realm Office was entitled, "Why the Ku Klux Klan Opposed
the World Court." It was regarded as one of the best issued.
On the back of the Leaflet was the maxim, "The Ku Klux Klan
holds that American Questions should be settled by Americans
in America. Inside was merely the following brief statement.

World Court Officers

President, M. De La Torriente Pereza of Cuba — Catholic.

Vice-Presidents, M. Pusta of Esthonia— Catholic, Count De
Gimeno of Spain — Catholic, M. Fortoul of Venezuela —
Catholic, Sir Lord Robert Cecil of England — Protestant.
(80^0 Catholic*)

Council of the League of Nations

Advised by the World Court

M. Vandervelde of Belgium — Catholic.

M. DeMello Franco of Brazil — Catholic.

Dr. Benes of Czechoslovakia — Catholic.

M. Briand of France — Catholic.

M. Scialoga of Italy — Catholic.

M. Quero Boule of Spain — Catholic.

M. Sjoberg of Sweden — Catholic.

Sir Austen Chamberlain of Great Britain — Protestant.
Viscount Ishii of Japan — Shinto.

(Council 70% Catholic*)

The Assembly of the League of Nations

Abyssinia — three — Catholic. Bulgaria — three — Catholic.

Albania — two — Catholic. Finland — three — Catholic.

Austria — two — Catholic. France — twenty-four —

Belgium — six — CathoHc. Catholic.

Brazil — six— Catholic. etc., etc., etc.

(Assembly membership 286. CathoHc 192, Protestant 94)
*Catholic — one subservient to and dominated by the papacy.

The cancellation or reduction of foreign war debt owed to the
U. S. was also consistently opposed in the literature of the Klan,
but since the policy of our State Department was in line with
Klan beliefs, there was no occasion for the Klan to get excited
about this matter. There was, however, one other item of foreign

The Klan and the State 115

policy which aroused the Realm office to feverish activity. This
was "the Mexican Question." In an attempt to enforce its re^
vised Constitution, Mexico had been charged by certain American
interests with violations of their rights. There was considerable
correspondence between our Department of State and the Mexi-
can government. But the interest which the Klan took in this
controversy was not economic. Nowhere in the literature of the
Order is there any evidence that the Klan leaders understood the
technical, legal or commercial matters under dispute. They op-
posed intervention in the affairs of Mexico not because they were
hostile to American trade or investments in Mexico, but because
it appeared that the Catholics wanted American intervention.

The new Mexican Constitution besides trying to repatriate cer-
tain mineral and land resources had also tried to secularize politics
and education. As a means to this latter end foreign priests
were forbidden to remain within the country, certain monasteries
and nunneries were aboHshed and provision was made for pubhc
education under state control. The loss of privilege suffered by
the Roman Church in Mexico naturally aroused the sympathy of
many American Catholics, some of whom openly expressed the
wish that the U. S. would intervene in order to preserve at once
American economic interests and religious freedom.

This interest of American Catholics in the Mexican situation
was a source of alarm for the Klansmen. They saw in it an
attempt of the Roman Church to "involve this country in a^war
with Mexico." Concealing its aim to regain thereby its "lost
privileges and power," the Roman Church was laying down "a
clever smoke screen of protecting American lives and property."
Klansmen held that Secretary Kellogg had been misled by Catho-
lics "to believe that the Mexican Government's casting off the
yoke of Rome is Bolshevism." They broadcast the fact that the
Knights of Columbus had raised a million dollars to propagandize
for intervention, and prophesied that President Coolidge was
ready to "lay a strong hand upon Mexico" as soon as the ad-
journment of Congress would free him from Congressional inter-
ference. The Realm Office encouraged all Klansmen to arouse
themselves to meet the crisis and informed the local klavems
that it had not been negligent of its duty but had distributed

116 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

"upwards of one hundred thousand four-page Mexican Leaflets"
and had in addition "assisted with Bulletins and speakers." "

With the mention of the anti-Smith campaign, the ef¥ort to
prevent the entrance of the United States into the League of
Nations and the World Court and the flurry of excitement over
a feared U. S. intervention in Mexico to aid the Catholic Church,
the list of political activities of any national importance under-
taken by the Klan in Pennsylvania is exhausted. After 1928 the
Order, with its greatly depleted membership became increasingly
just another patriotic society. In its literature it supported the
big army and navy program, applauded the Daughters of the
American Revolution, and even expressed good will toward Hitler
because his anti-Semitic policy was felt to be somewhat akin to
its own racial attitude.

Between the lines of much of its propaganda one could read
the implication that it might not be a bad thing for the United
States if a fascist movement with the Klan in the role of leader-
ship were to develop here. But the dwindling membership of the
Order gave no promise of that. Perhaps it was more to keep
the Klan from disintegrating altogether than to produce the fear
prerequisite for a large grant of power to a dictator that the
Klan leaders after 1931 simulated increasing concern over the
growth of radicalism within the country and substituted "the
menace of communism" for the fading spectre of Romanism.

References

1. Quoted by Stanley Frost in the Outlook, vol. 13(5, p. 66.

2. Hiram Wesley Evans in the Forum, vol. 74, p. 801, December, 1925.

3. Ibid.

4. Told to the writer by Ross Kalp, E. C. of Scottdale Klavern.

5. Told to the writer by Sterrett L. Clark, E. C. of Hazelwood Klavern.

6. Hiram W. Evans in the Outlook, vol. 1}6, p. 64.

7. Compare the protests of American Protestants to the Supreme Court Decision in the
Macintosh Case. See for instance Christian Century, June 10, 1931, p. 776; July
1, 1931, p. 878 ; Jan. 20, 1932, p. 84; also Lit. Dig. Jan. 25, 1930, p. 14.

8. For example, see: Correspondence of H. C. Shaw to the Exalted Cyclops of the
Realm, March 29, 1927.

9. Catholic Encyclopedia: Article on "Tolerance."

10. Klan Leaflet, Form C-lOn.

11. There was not a single Klan Exalted Cyclops or state official with whom the writer
raised this question who did not deny that the Klan's program was negative. See
also manuscriDt of a speech delivered many times by Rev. J. F. Strayer ; also
Proceedings of the Second Imperial Klonvokation, p. 35: "The Knights of the Ku
Klux Klan is not in any sense an anti-organization..."

12. Circular letter by H. C. Shaw to all the Exalted Cyclops of the Realm, March 28, 1927.
15. Anonymous pamphlet entitled "Food for Thought" which was circulated among

Klansmen of Pennsylvania and elsewhere.

14. Circular letter by H. C. Shaw to "Faithful and Esteemed Klansmen," June 16, 1927.

15. Pittsburgh Gazette Times, October 7, 1924.

The Klan and the State

117

References

16 Correspondence of Shaw to his Exalted Cyclops, March 29, 1927.

«noSJs.r:v£ijr

from the '■Pennsylvania Manual'' 1929, p. 527 following.

oLu"oT?etatw\ to' Mex,crn*n^ were taken ^rom m.meographed circulars

?enf from Shaw's office to all the Klaverns in the State. Undated, tliey were d.s-
tributed in the spring or summer of 1927.

CHAPTER 8

The Klan and the Church :
Religious Activities of the Order

'Men will wrangle for religion; write for it; fight for
it; die for it; anything but live for it." — Caleb Colton

Founded by a one-time Methodist preacher, the Knights of
the Ku Klux Klan boasted of their devotion to religion. The
purpose of the Order was to attain the "solidarity of Protestants
for Social, Civic, and Moral Defense and Progress." ^ Its symbol
was a cross. Its "Kreed" asserted that Klansmen "reverentially
acknowledge the majesty and supremacy of the Divine Being,
and recognize the goodness and providence of the Same." - One
of the officials of every klavern was a chaplain called a Kludd.
At each meeting he delivered an opening prayer, expressed to
God the hope that Klansmen might "forsake the bad and choose
and strive for the good, remembering always that the living Christ
is a Klansman's criterion of character." ^ In the closing ceremony
of the klavern, in answer to the Exalted Cyclop's inquiry, "How
speaketh the oracles of our God?", the Kludd arose to say:
"Thou shall worship the Lord thy God. Render unto the State
the things which are the State's. Love the brotherhood, honor
the king. Bear ye one another's burdens and so fulfill the law of
Christ." * A "kloxology" was raised to "God of eternity" and
"the blessings of God" were called down upon them in benedic-
tion. All this was done before an altar, which was an essential
piece of equipment of every klavern.

In the naturalization ceremony by which applicants were in-
vested with membership in the Order, the applicant was obliged
to affirm his belief in "the tenets of the Christian religion," was
anointed with "a transparent, life-giving, powerful, God-given
fluid . . . divinely distilled," * and was dedicated by prayer "to

The Klan and the Church 119

that sublime work harmonic with God's will and purpose in our
creation." ^ Thus was it officially assumed that Klansmen were
servants of the Lord God for whose benediction they had no
hesitancy in asking.

Not only were klavern meetings and initiation ceremonies given
a religious cast but national and state conventions, especially m
the first few years of the Order's history, were conducted in an
atmosphere of religious devotion deliberately produced by the
leaders. Mention of Christian ideals and the invocation of God's
guidance were common. H. E. Evans, addressing the Imperial
Klonvokation in 1924 (Kansas City, Mo.), tactfully minimizmg
the importance of his own leadership, asserted that "God has
done a greater thing for the Klan than that of giving it human
leadership. He has given it His Own Leadership. The Lord
has guided us and shaped the events in which we rejoice. This
fact . . . must increase our faith in the Klan,— in its growth m
grace and power, in its mission, in its final complete victory." In
all important gatherings of the Klan, each day's session was begun
with a devotional service. The favorite Scripture reading was
the familiar admonition of St. Paul to his Roman brethren to
"think soberly ... be kindly alfectioned . . . recompense to
no man evil for evil . . . live peaceably with all men." There
is evidence that some Klan leaders held before Klansmen a high
spiritual idealism and devotion. To quote from one of them:

"My brethren, I never enter a Klavern and stand before
a prepared altar where the Fiery Cross looks down upon me,
its Holy Light blazing forth all the sacred traditions of the
past, nor behold it as it gives light to the feet of Klansmen
in parades through the streets of a great city, that 1 do not
wish that I myself and every Klansman in the nation . . .
could behold that Cross as Paul beheld it, and cry with him:
'God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our
Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me,
and I unto the world.' If every Klansman in the nation
could say that with Paul, America \yould be safe for Amer-
icans from this day to the end of time. . . .

"Keeping step with the Master and daily striving to emu-
late His example— this is the sacrifice, if sacrifice it may be
called which Klansmen offer that America and the world
may be saved. Are you ready to lay all your consecrated
power of manhood on the altar this afternoon as a token ot

120 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

love and gratitude to Him, and to say: 'By the help of
Almighty God, I determine that from this hour on I will so
live that I can hand down to future generations the standard
of what a real American ought to be ; that I will seek to make
America the first of all the nations to fulfill the will of God
and to crown Jesus Lord of all?" "

There is no doubt that many honest Klansmen were inspired
by the religious activities of the Order to consecrate themselves
to principles which they believed, whether mistaken or not, were
consistent with Christian teachings. Returning from the Kansas
City Klonvokation of 1924 one Pennsylvania Exalted Cyclops ob-
served to the writer: "Pve attended a lot of church gatherings
and conventions both of my own and other denominations but I
never attended one where the revival spirit was as pronounced as
it was at the Klan Klonvokation."

It is not true, however, to infer that the religious fervor which
characterized a few great inspirational gatherings of the Klan was
typical of the general run of state meetings in Pennsylvania.
Called Kloreros, these annual meetings were likewise opened with
devotional exercises. Rev. J. W. Dempster, of Crafton, was con-
spicuous as a leader of these services for the first few years that
they were held. Nevertheless, the minutes of these meetings gives
one the impression that the devotions were not an integral part
of the programs, being largely perfunctory like the routine prayers
at the opening of a session of Congress or the required ten verses
of scripture and the repetition of the Lord's Prayer at the start
of the day's work in the public schools. The spirit invoked by
the officiating minister was not noticeably present as the business
of the session was taken up.

Locally, a few klans maintained a rather sustained evangelistic
atmosphere over a considerable period. It was characteristic of
the early part of the movement, however, and of those Klaverns
which had enrolled most of the ministers of their communities.
While the number of such instances was by no means large enough
to consider them typical of the movement, it can likewise be said
that the absence of any expression of religious devotion other
than that in the ritual was also typical of only a small percentage
of the local units.

The Klan and the Church

121

When initiation ceremonies grew wearisome or ceased and the
business to be transacted was small, klavern programs were often
pieced out with song services which had a religious or semi-
religious character. Among the standard hymns which were con-
sidered by Klansmen to be appropriate were the familiar "Blest
Be the Tie That Binds" and "When I Survey the Wondrous
Cross." "The Old Rugged Cross" became almost an official hymn.
Although sometimes sung with the original words of its author, it
was more often turned into a campaign song by changing the
chorus to read, "I will cherish the bright Fiery Cross . . ."
The ingenuity of Klansmen found considerable expression m
making appropriate changes in familiar hymns to suit the Klan
symbolism. Thus "There's a Church in the Valley by the Wild-
wood" became "There's a Cross That is Burning in the Wild-
wood" ; "Onward, Christian Soldiers" became "Onward, Valiant
Klansmen"; and "Let the Lower Lights Be Burning" became:

"Let the fiery cross be burning,
Spread its beams o'er land and sea ;
Satan's wiles forever spurning,
Bringing Christ to you and me."

In KUan ideology, religion and patriotism were often naturally
and unconsciously mingled. It is doubtful if most Klansmen con-
ceived of "love of God" and "love of country" as distinct things.
They thought of America, as the Israelites had of Canaan, as
God's special gift to the people whose culture He wished to pre-
serve, the inference being that this cuhure was akin to God's
will for America and through America for the whole world.
At its worst, Klan tliinking turned the non-racial religion of
Christianity into one as narrowly national and racial as was the
Jehovah worship of the Israelites during the period of the Judges.
God became merely the press agent of the Pilgrim Fathers.

Rev. Paul S. Wight, who found in Klan publicity a very lu-
crative way to serve God and his own Christian (Campbelite)
Church and who finally established "The International Music
Company" to distribute song booklets and victrola records to
Klansmen, is the author of the following verses illustrating this
synthesis of patriotism and religion:

122 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

Klansman's Jubilee Song^^

(Tune: Battle Hymn of the Republic)
We rally 'round Old Glory in our robes of spotless white;
While the fiery cross is burning, in the silent silv'ry night.
Come join our glorious army in the cause of God and Right.
The Klan is marching on . . .

The blessed Pilgrim Fathers, fought and died for liberty.
They sailed through troubled waters, died that we might be
made free.

Oh, shall we dare surrender ? No ! Our battle cry shall be :
"God's truth is marching on."

Oh, yes, we stand for liberty, for freedom of our land ;
The same as our dear fathers' won from cruel tyrant's hand.
We'll keep the sacred heritage, for in His might we stand,
As we go marching on.

Another "religious" practice which was characteristic of Klans
throughout the state consisted of church visitations. Just as their
song services combined religious worship with "kluxing" and the
building of morale, so these visitations had a double purpose.
They passed for devoutness and advertised the Order as well.
The most common fonn of this practice was to come to the church
in a body dressed in full regalia. Usually there was some attempt
made to secure the permission of the minister or other important
official of the church and to have provision made for a room in
which to robe and reserved seats adequate to accommodate them
in the auditorium. This latter allowed them to march in after
the usual audience had assembled and after the service had com-
menced. The escorting ushers, the orderly marching, the waiting
audience, it was felt, all added dignity and impressiveness to the
ceremony. Sometimes the Klansmen would contribute a special
song to the service ; often they merely sat quietly and gave as
much attention to the minister's remarks as their uncomfortable
bodies, perspiring under their robes, would allow.

Klansmen were quite conscious of the publicity value of these
occasions and in view of this fact and the anticipation of a news
item in the local paper, they were quite willing to pay for value
received. When the collection plates were passed they were gen-
erous in their contributions, often giving as much as a dollar

The Klan and the Church 123

each Many a pastor and deacon of an impoverished church wel-
comed visitations for this pecuniary benefit. Regarding the effect
of these donations upon Klansmen, one district official boas ed
that there had been an increase in Hberality among the Klan
members. "Around Reading," said this official, "the 'Dutch were
surprisingly tight in the matter of basket contributions <:hurch
Ordinarily they put m just a penny or two. One of the firs
times we went to a service, each of us put in a silver dollar. It
was interesting to hear these dropping one after another into the
plates. The plates actually became so heavy that they were
annoying. After that experience we usually gave dollar bills
folded in the shape of the letter 'K.' I think we actually got
some of our people used to contributing a decent sum to the
church collections." But, since no attempt was made by his
official to determine the actual contributions of Klansmen when
attending church as ordinary communicants, the inference made
must be interpreted as purely conjectural.

Moreover, such church visitations were hardly regular enough
to be habit forming in any respect. If two were made yearly a
Klan usually congratulated itself upon its cooperation with the
regular activities of the church. Besides, the advertising value of
such occasions depended in part upon their unusualness The m-
frequency of this type of church visitation was also due to the
fact that by no means all Protestant ministers welcomed the robed
Klansmen. Among ministers who were not Klan members, few
indeed wished to have them come. The few who did grant them
permission were often personally rewarded. "I got twenty-five
dollars in a lump sum," said one such minister^ ' and later nve
and ten dollar bills to total sixty-five dollars. The Klan wanted

the publicity." " , ^ a

Another type of visitation, while not so frequently attempted
also served to identify the Klan as an Order which sanctioned
and supported the regular work of the Protestant churches. The
following procedure was used. A few Klansmen m full regalia
and with the visors of their hoods down to prevent their identifi-
cation would enter the service unannounced, often interrupting
the minister in the midst of a sermon. Two Klansmen, perhaps,
would enter each door leading into the auditorium and stand on
guard while two or four others would march down the center

124

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

aisle to the pulpit, give the minister an envelope, about face, march
from the building and disappear in waiting cars. If well staged
such a visitation was startling in its effect, having much of the
dramatic quality of a hold-up in broad daylight. The minister
whose service was thus interrupted and who generally had diffi-
culty in recapturing the attention of his audience was compensated
by receiving a letter commending his work and a small personal
donation, usually from ten to twenty-five dollars in amount.

After reviewing these religious or semi-religious practices of
the Klan the question naturally arises : what was the effect of the
Order upon the religious life of the individual members? The
testimony given was varied. "Men prayed in my Klavern meet-
ings who I am sure never prayed before, at least in public," said
one Exalted Cyclops.^* "The Klan brought a religious influence
about a class of men who seldom went to any church service,"
said another.^° Klansmen from diff'erent parts of the state told
the writer that they were under the impression that it was a re-
quirement of the Order that members must attend church services.
While there was no official rule of this kind, their testimony bears
witness to the fact that church attendance was at least strongly
recommended by some Exalted Cyclops. On the other hand, a
secretary of another local Klavern testified : "We didn't tell the
men to go to church. We told them to go home and read their
Bibles and carry out what they found there. If they did that,
they couldn't go wrong."

In general, the testimony warrants the confident assertion that
the Klan, although it claimed to be a militant Protestant Order,
did not contribute much to the growth of membership either of
the churches or of Sunday Schools and Bible study groups. This
was not surprising. Many Protestant church members gladly
joined the Klan because they found it an institution which gave
expression to their beliefs and fears by action which the churches
refused to take. Certain considerations, however, prevented as
natural a movement from the Klan into the churches. The Klan
was not engaged in proselytizing non-Protestants or converting
disbelievers like the regular missionary societies. It antagonized
rather than converted those of dift'ering beliefs. Already nominal
Protestants or non-church goers with Protestant background,
Klansmen did not gravitate into the churches because the churches

The Klan and the Church

125

furnished nothing essential to their needs— with one exception to
be noted later.

Desiring inspiration for their program of direct action, of
political and often physical coercion, Klansmen found the churches
—save in the prohibition struggle— committed to the milder proc-
esses of persuasion and spiritual regeneration. Eager for battle
against foes whom they considered both disciplined and unscru-
pulous they found little stimulus in the preachment of the
redeeming power of love. The Klan secured more inspiration
from the vigorously anti-Catholic papers like The Menace and the
Fellowship Forum and from their own professional organizers
and press than from the churches. The goal of the Klan was
not primarily the development of religious devotion but the de-
velopment and expression of religious partisanship. Klansmen
had graduated, so to speak, from the elementary school of the
church or. like self-educated men, had acquired "an equivalent
training" outside her walls. They felt little need to go back to
her for inspiration just as the adult finds it unnecessary to return
to his primer and lexicon. This is the reason why the Klan,
while its membership included many non-churchgoers, did not
measurably swell the church congregations.

On the other hand, the churches did have prestige and the
Klan badly needed that. Indeed, it was indispensible, and the
Klan, therefore, tried to strengthen every connection with the
churches which could possibly be established. This explains the
insistence of the Klan leaders that their Order was "Protestantism
militant" ; that it was "Protestantism's Ally," doing in civil life
that which the churches, being strictly religious institutions, could
not undertake without violating the principle of "separation of
church and state." " This explains why Klansmen who enjoyed
the heady wine of Klan activity and found the program of the
churches flat in comparison, were so eager to profess their loyalty
to Protestantism. To secure recognition by the churches they
quite willingly gave periodic donations and praise. When repulsed,
the general attitude of Klansmen was that of disappointment and
anger. They would show the church even to the extent of "break-
ing" hostile ministers and of encouraging withdrawals from their
congregations,

126

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

There were, of course, specific instances which varied from the
general rule described above. For example, the first minister in
the city of Pittsburgh to join the Klan was the pastor of an
impoverished Methodist Protestant parish in North Side. The
Klan deliberately built its membership and, with Klan assistance,
it enjoyed a rather flourishing condition for a time. While this
is the only instance of its kind that has come to the attention of
the writer, there were many cases where churches whose pastors
were Klansmen gained at the expense of other churches in the
community whose pastors were openly hostile to the Klan. This
movement of Klansmen into churches whose pastors were them-
selves Klansmen was never large and consisted generally of radical
individuals who were potential trouble makers anyway. Nor was
the movement wholly away from the anti-Klan ministers. A great
deal of dissatisfaction was expressed by parishioners of the Klan
ministers who disliked the hullabaloo of Klan visitations and were
hostile to the secrecy and to the extra-legal methods of the Order.
Withdrawals of such parishioners often equalled the gains pre-
viously mentioned.

The Klan, whose ideals included the unity of all Protestants for
the defense of church and state, became a divisive force of no
small importance. Fortunately it did not array denomination
against denomination. The heads of synods, presbyteries, con-
ferences, (or corresponding bodies) in the state maintained an
official silence regarding the Order. Personally, many of these
church officials advised their pastors to ignore the Klan if possible.
In a survey, made by the writer, of representative ministers of
three leading denominations in the state, the testimony was almost
universal that no official action was taken either by the district
conferences of their denominations or by ministerial associations
in the various cities and communities where they served.* There
was, however, a growing belief among a majority of the ministers
that the Klan was a disturbing force which they hoped might
quickly disappear. While some ministers were Klan members and

♦Interesting in this connection is the fact that some church publications avoided dis-
cussion of the Klan in their columns. The Presbyterian Banner, for instance, during the
years 1921-1925, made no mention o^ the Klan except in one news item regarding the
attempt of the Klan to have white officials chosen for the Soldiers Hospital at Tuskegee.
The Methodist Review during the years 1924-25 when the Klan was at its height, carried
only one article which might be inferred as bearing on the Klan. It was a literary re-
view entitled " Browning's Condemnation of Roman Catholicism."

The Klan and the Church 127

believed that it served a good purpose, many more thought that
it represented a travesty both of Americanism and of Prot-
estantism.

Although the Klan did not cause noticeable tightenmg of de-
nominational lines as between the Protestants, its divisive char-
acter was frequently evidenced within the parishes themselves.
One reason for the division of opinion has been suggested above.
Klansmen were often disappointed with the cold reception they
received from the ministers and church officials. It was irrita-
ting to be disowned by the institutions in whose defense they
had spent time and money. The anti-Klan Protestants, on the
other hand, had grown antagonistic to the Order for three main
reasons: it was secret, it had used the churches to gain cheap
publicity for itself, and its opposition to those of other races
and religious faiths was lacking in discrimination. There were
quite a few instances where the antagonism between the pro-Klan
and anti-Klan factions within a parish reached a critical stage
which seriously imperiled the work of the church, at least tempo-
rarily The Methodist Protestant Church in Connellsville, the
Baptist Church in Charleroi, the United Brethren Church in
Latrobe, the Christian Church in Scottdale, the United Brethren
Church in Hanover, the Presbyterian churches m Crafton and
Carnegie are typical cases. Dr. David M. Lyle, of Johmt^J"'
reported another instance ; Dr. William R. Craig, of Philadel-
phia, reported two more; Rev. J. E. A. Bucke, of Sunbury, re-
ported one; Rev. I. B. Littleton reported that ^ost oi the
churches with which he was familiar in Cambria and Bedford
counties had some friction over the Klan although in most cases
it was not serious. Certain types of trouble arose more frequently
and are illustrated by the following specific cases.

Case one The telephone in Dr. Michael McDivitt's office
rang one morning. The Doctor, who was the pastor of an
influential Presbyterian Church in South Hills district, R ts-
burgh, answered. The person calling spoke of the Ku Khix
Klan and its growth in Pittsburgh and wondered if Dr.
McDivitt was interested. He also mentioned an open nieet-
ing of the Order in the Strand Theatre soon to be held.
"We would be glad to have you take a part on the program
of that meeting if you could arrange to be present.

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

"Who is it speaking?" asked Doctor McDivitt. The caller
replied that he was not in a position to give his name but
that he was an official — an Exalted Cyclops — of a local
Klavern. Doctor McDivitt told him that he could not pos-
sibly attend this Klan meeting, having a previous engagement.

Then followed a request from the official that Dr. McDivitt
read an announcement of the meeting from his pulpit the
following Sunday morning. This was also declined.

A little piqued, the Klan official said, "You don't know
who you are talking to, do you?" The Doctor admitted his
ignorance and stated that he thought it unfair for the official
to continue the conversation if he withheld his own name.

"I am a member of your church," the official disclosed
and then stated that the Knoxville church was an impor-
tant one, that it had a wide influence and announced, "We
are coming over to church some Sunday as a body." Dr.
McDivitt replied that he would be glad to welcome them if
they came without their regalia, as regular worshipers.

"We have in mind to make a substantial donation to the
relief fund of the church," parried the official in the hope
that such a prospect might make some difference in his
pastor's attitude. "I have nothing to say against that," re-
plied the Doctor. "If you care to make such a donation
we will be glad to accept it but I cannot give my consent
to your coming in regalia."

"Suppose, then, that we just drop in sometime, without
invitation," suggested the Exalted Cyclops. When Dr. Mc-
Divitt protested against this, the official began to speak
threateningly. Dr. McDivitt listened for a while and then
replied, "I am not afraid of what your organization or any
secret society can do to me or to the Church of Christ.
Christ's Church is always out in the open and isn't ashamed
of what it does or says and unless you are willing to reveal
your name, our conversation must stop."

The telephone receivers were hung up but the minister,
in spite of his bold assertion, was disturbed. He did not
know how many Klansmen belonged to his congregation or
how serious a division might arise from his attitude. Not
until the Session of his church unanimously upheld his action
did he cease to worry. Fortunately the Klan group in his
church were not numerous enough to warrant any further
action by the Order.^*

Case two. Not many blocks away from Dr. McDivitt's
church was the Knox Avenue Methodist Episcopal Church.
There were among its members quite a group of Klansmen

The Klan and the Church

129

when Clyde Nevins, its new pastor, came. A brilliant young
man and more liberal in his views than his Klansmen parish-
ioners he refused all their invitations and solicitations to
join the Order. In fact on several occasions he pubhcally
expressed his disapproval of its methods. His Klansmen
parishioners, thus rebuffed, retaliated in kind. They became
actively hostile to their minister and came to his services m
robes and hoods more as a warning than as a sign of ap-
proval of the work of the church. Rev. Nevins found his
efTorts to lead his church so thwarted that his Bishop was
finally obliged to remove him to another charge.

Meanwhile the anti-KIan parishioners were chagrined to
f^nd their services disturbed by robed Klansmen. One of the
leading members of the congregation came to Dr. McDivitt
furious in his resentment about a Klan visitation that had
just taken place, and asked if he might transfer with his
family to Dr. McDivitt's church. With difficulty Dr. Mc-
Divitt persuaded him to remain in the church where he was
already influential and aid in preventing the disintegration
which was rapidly taking place."

Case three. It was Easter Sunday, 1923, in Belleview,
one of the better residential centers not far from Pittsburgh
which overlook the Ohio River from the bluff on its north-
ern bank. Dr. R. B. Urmy was in his pulpit at the Metho-
dist Episcopal Church and the service was well under way.
Just as the collection was being taken, the auditorium doors
opened and a group of Klansmen in full regalia entered.
They separated into three groups and started down the aisles
toward the pulpit. As six of them approached Attorney
Elmer Kidney, a trustee of the church who was assisting
with the collection of the offering, blocked their way and
sharply ordered them to "get out and be quick about it."
Dr. Urmy, too, rose and said, "Gentlemen, you are disturb-
ing the services here, which is a violation of the law. You
will be perfectly welcome to remain if you remove your
disguises. Otherwise you must go."

At this double rebuff the Klansmen hesitated and finally
retreated toward the door. Attorney Kidney followed them
with mounting indignation at their affrontery in thus break-
ing unheralded into the service. In the vestibule his six
feet and two hundred pounds went into action with the re-
sult that he had several hoods and parts of robes as evi-
dence of his prowess and of the hurried departure of the
startled Klansmen.

Dr. Urmy continued the Easter service announcing that
he would use the Klan as the subject of his sermon the
following Sunday evening, at which time he criticized the

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

Order declaring it to be both un-Christian and un-American.
The incident proved to be a tactical defeat of some impor-
tance for the Klan. Several of its state officials called on
Dr. Urmy the following week, professing the good inten-
tions of their Order. They had only desired to openly
demonstrate their support of the work of his church but,
in spite of this conciliatory attitude. Dr. Urmy refused to
retract any statements he had made in criticism of the Klan.
Fortunately the Klan was weak in Belleview and there was
almost no opposition to him from Klansmen within his own
congregation.^"

Case four. That all ministers did not fare so well when
they took a stand on the Klan issue is shown by the experi-
ence of Rev. Fred R. Dent. Graduated from Washington
and Jefferson College in 1905 where he did excellent work,
he went to Youngstown for his first charge, later coming to
Milvale Presbyterian Church. In both places he was ac-
ceptably received and the reports of his work were good.
While at Milvale he became interested in the Klan and was
offered remunerative work with the organization as a lec-
turer. In this capacity he proved quite effective. He helped
to organize the Altoona Klavern which grew to be the largest
in the state, having more than 2,000 members. He boasted
of having signed up 550 members during one meeting at
this place.

For a time he worked as assistant Kleagle on a regular
commission and was given charge of propagation in a dis-
trict of his own. He was finally hired by the Atlanta office
and received his checks regularly every two weeks. While
this meant a considerable addition to his regular salary as
pastor at Milvale, it also demanded that he give at least four
nights of the week to the Klan activities. Dr. McDivitt,
who had gone to college with him, tried to persuade him to
quit the Order. "You may be in pocket now but my pre-
diction is that you will be out of pocket later," he warned.
Rev. Dent, however, found more congenial companionship
and advice while in the company of Rev. Daugherty and
Rev. Dempster who were likewise Klan pastors. Rev.
Dempster and he would spend long hours in the Seventh
Avenue Hotel where they smoked and talked together.

But when the Klan declined, Rev. Dent declined with it.
He had alienated a good portion of his congregation by his
neglect of his pastoral duties. When they asked for a change
of ministers he was obliged to seek another opening. Doctor
Jones of the First Presloyterian Church wrote many letters
of recommendation for him ; Dr. McDivitt wrote many also.
As a capable man and a good preacher. Rev. Dent could be

The Klan and the Church

131

praised but his affiliation with the Ku Klux Klan turned
parish after parish against him. When this writer inter-
viewed him (1933) he was living with a relative spendmg
his leisure hours digging up the records of his family history
and preaching to a little rural church which could not ade-
quately support him and in which he seemed little interested.

By no means all the ministers who lectured for the Klan as a
profitable side line suffered the fate of Rev. Dent. The list of
those who did suffer severely, however, is long enough. The evi-
dence is convincing that Rev. J. W. Dempster of the Crafton
Presbyterian Church who as a Klansman rose high in the coun-
cils of the state organization, had so alienated his congregation
that he would shortly have been' removed from his church in a
similar fashion had he not suddenly died of a stroke before the
Crafton church had taken action. Not a single case has been
reported of a minister whose membership in the Order gained
for him the respect of his denominational leaders or materially
aided in his professional advancement.

From the fact that division was prevalent within congregations
over the Klan issue can easily be inferred the fact that the Klan
failed to stimulate progress toward unified action by the Prot-
estant churches or to increase cooperation among them. This
was true in spite of the general assumption in Klan literature
and by the propagandists of the Order that all denominations
were equal in rights and represented one unified body of opin-
ion which could be adequately described by the singular noun
Protestantism. The Klan problem itself was considered a local
issue, not one for united action by any group of churches.

On the other hand, the Klan definitely hindered the growth of
a spirit of cooperation between Protestants and Catholics and
their affiliated organizations in certain common enterprises to
which the Klan gave its support. There had, of course, never
been— except in extremely rare instances— any religious coopera-
tion between the Catholic Church and the various Protestant
denominations ; no transfer of members by letter, no exchange of
pulpits, no union meetings, no visitations by communicants to
each other's services with the consent of priests and ministers.
The dogmatic differences between Protestantism and Catholicism
were great enough to make them unassimilable. Nevertheless,

132

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

Catholics occupied seats with Protestants on many charitable and
civic bodies and had shared in advancing numerous political and
moral reforms. The Klan did not affect much of this coopera-
tion. Since, for example, the Klan was not interested in nor,
in the minds of Catholics, associated with welfare work such as
Red Cross and community chests, both Catholics and Protestants
continued to work together in this type of activity. The Klan
movement did result in a definite withdrawal of Catholic co-
operation in other lines of work. In poHtics it has already been
noted how religious affiliations became more important than eco-
nomic or social issues, often dividing the population sharply into
Catholic and Protestant groups. In the educational field the
growth of the Klan resulted in a decrease in the cooperation which
Catholics gave to the public school system.

It likewise affected the Prohibition movement in which Cath-
olics and Protestants had both been interested. Sponsored by
organized religion because of its moral aspects, the campaign for
prohibition was by no means simply a Protestant movement. The
Catholic Church had built up a flourishing temperance organiza-
tion and work was being done in many parishes especially among
the young people. Rev. J. J. Curran, a prominent Pennsylvania
Catholic, was one of those who had not only strongly supported
the temperance movement within his own Church but, as vice-
president of the Anti-Saloon League for twenty-five years, had
actively supported its activities. In view of the fact that the
majority of the Catholics in many parishes were families of im-
migrants and that standards accepted for generations had to be
broken down before new ideals of temperance and sobriety were
acceptable, the task of Catholic prohibition workers was as dififi-
cult as it was important.

Describing some of the work they had done, Michael Williams,
editor of Commonweal, lists, among other things, the following:
"Thousands of reprints of an article by United States Senator
Ransdell of Louisiana, a Catholic who favored prohibition, were
circulated, together with a pamphlet entitled. The Catholic Clergy
and the Solution, containing quotations from popes, archbishops,
bishops, and priests. Some of these statements were simply
strong pleas for temperance or total abstinence, both of which
movements have always been supported strongly by the Catholic

The Klan and the Church

133

Church; while others again were outright endorsements of
prohibition.""

It was a movement which should have had the encouragement
of all dry Klansmen but the stereotyped view of Catholics held
by Klansmen blinded them to its very existence. Their mental
association of the words "rum and Romanism" had been too
firmly established. It is, of course, true that the Catholic Church
had not made abstinence from intoxicants a prerequisite for
salvation in the way that certain Calvinistic groups made it a
sign of membership among the "elect." Klansmen, however,
failed to recognize that the Catholic Church did consider in-
temperance a social evil and had encouraged its eradication.
Catholics were often condemned wholesale as opposed to pro-
hibition and as violators of the Constitution, in contrast to which
Klansmen boasted of the "pure Americanism" shown by their
own support of the Eighteenth Amendment.

It was inevitable that some of the violent dislike which Cath-
olics had for the Klan would be transferred to the Klan's official
prohibition attitude with a resultant relaxation in their support
of the temperance movement. Such was actually the case. Pro-
hibition workers among the Catholics found their task doubly
hard and in many places abandoned it altogether.

References

\- ^L?ffiTKran%'".le looZ'^K^'hu. Klan Press, p. 2.

3. Ibid p. 14.

4. Ibid p. 16.

5. Ibid p. 19.

6. Ibid p. 40.

8.' p'r'oceedings of tht Second Imperial Klonvokation. p. 55.

16 Testimony of I. A. Kelley, Scnttdale Klan No. 32.

17 -ThrKlan: Protestantism's Ally." Kourier Magazme, Aug. 1925.

18. Personal interview with Dr. McDivitt.

19. Personal interview with Dr. McDivitt.

20. Personal interview with Dr. Urmy. Cf. Lit. Dig. 77/37 May 5, iV^i-

21. Personal interview with Rev. F. R. Derit. ,

22. Michael Williams: "The Shadow of the Pope (N. Y. 1932) p. -iu?-

CHAPTER 9

The Klan and the Schools

The "school question" which had been the most important issue
in the nativist agitation of the 1840's and had been prominent
in both the Know Nothing and the A. P. A. movements, was by
no means overlooked when the Klan carried the banner of na-
tivism in the 1920's. As in the earlier agitation, so in this last
instance, the controversy was one phase of nativist opposition
to the Catholic Church. One must be careful, however, not to
be misled by Klan trumpetings against "the enemies of our pub-
lic schools" and assume that Catholics who maintained their own
parochial schools opposed free public education. The question
was not whether there should be free schools maintained by
public taxation. Catholics answered that query with as full-
voiced an affirmative as did Protestant Klansmen. The dispute
lay in the control of the education given in the free schools.

The issue was often expressed as involving the abandonment
or the preservation of the "American" principle of separation of
church and state. Actually, of course, there was never a time
in American history when this separation had been complete.
It will be remembered, for instance, that while the maintenance
of an established church by the Federal Government was pro-
hibited by the Bill of Rights, its authors really expected the
states to encourage Christianity. Some of them did continue to
maintain established churches for many years and church prop-
erty is still free from taxation in many of them. Applied to the
public schools, separation of church and state would not be
complete unless all religious instruction was eliminated. Prot-
estant Klansmen out to put the Bible into the schools were as
hostile to that as were devout Catholics. Warning against the
materialistic emphasis in education and pointing to the fate of
Rome, the author of an ofiicial Klan pamphlet wrote : "The im-

The Klan and the Schools

135

portant question, the thing that most concerns us is, Are our
children developing Christian character?"^ Obviously, Klans-
men were not campaigning for "godless" schools in which re-
ligious instruction was taboo.

If, then, Klansmen were unwilling to carry out the logical im-
plication of the principle of separation, several other alternatives
were possible. Briefly outlined these were :

1. Parochialism, i.e., separate denominational schools.

(a) in which public funds would be distributed to various
denominational schools in some such manner as m Eng-
land and Holland, the State demanding the mamtenance
of a certain standard of secular instruction m these

schools; or , r \ t

(b) in which the public schools were opened for the use ot
Catholics and other religious groups after regular school
hours for purposes of religious instruction, e.g., the
Faribault plan.

2. The "common school" which all children, regardless of re-
ligious affiliation, must attend,

(a) in which the religious instruction given was reduced to
include only that common to all religious groups ; or

(b) in which the majority of voters who controlled the
school could introduce whatever religious instruction
they might desire regardless of dissenting groups.

Catholics had consistently favored the alternative of parochial-
ism on the principle that "since education in the proper sense of
the word is essentially a spiritual function, the control of edu-
cation of (Catholic) children rests ultimately with the Church.
This does not mean that the state had not the right to establish
schools. But there is a great difference between estabHshing
schools and educating, between erecting buildings, paying salaries
and even compelling children to attend school and the actual work
of education."- There is no doubt that J. A. Burns, President
of Holy Cross College, in writing the statement just quoted, ex-
pressed the official Catholic attitude. Dr. Brownson, one of the
most respected CathoHc scholars of America, stated the point of
view of his Church as clearly as anyone when he wrote :

"All education, as all Hfe, should be religious, and all edu-
cation divorced from religion is an evil and not a good . . .
We deny the competency of the state to educate even for

136 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

its own order, its right to establish purely secular schools
from which all religion is excluded ; . . . but we do not
deny, we assert, rather, its right to establish public schools
under the internal control and management of the spiritual
society, and to exact that a certain amount of secular in-
struction be given along with the religious education that
society gives.

Against this alternative of parochialism and especially against
the assertion of the Catholic Church that education was "essen-
tially a function of the spiritual society,"* the Klan was vigor-
ously opposed. This claim of "the hierarchy," Klansmen as-
serted, was motivated by its desire "to facilitate the spread and
acceptance of its own sovereignty in every country affected, and
finally throughout the world."° Klan hostility to parochialism,
therefore, was apparently based upon a more fundamental issue
than the use of public funds for private Catholic schools, how-
ever much Klansmen talked about the principle of the separation
of church and state. Even if the private maintenance of Catholic
schools had been taken for granted and the question of securing
public funds had never been raised, Klansmen would have con-
tinued to oppose them because they felt that the "subversive"
doctrine of the sovereignty and authority of the Catholic clergy
was being inculcated in the minds of students who attended them.
The high praise and eager support given to the unconstitutional
Oregon school law requiring all children to attend public schools
is proof of this Klan attitude.

Not that the Klan opposed all parochial schools in Pennsyl-
vania. No warning crosses were burned before private schools
controlled by Protestant groups nor were their officials subjected
to public criticism. The term "parochial" was synonymous with
"Catholic" in Klan usage and it was as an alternative to Catholic
schools that Klansmen advocated a single common (to all) public
school system.

Although it is doubtful whether Klansmen were really inter-
ested in "American Principles" except as they could be made to
safeguard nativist control, they were vigorous in asserting them.
One of these principles which they discovered to be admirably
suited to their school poHcy was that of "democratic control."
It was "American," they believed, to have education placed in

The Klan and the Schools 137

the hands-theoretically, at least-of popular majorities rather
than in those of an ecclesiastical officialdom either _ Catholic or
Protestant. In areas like Oregon where popular majorities were
definitely Protestant this principle did work quite satisfactorily.

In usLg principle to support privilege the Klan was following
a practice by no means rare in human history Apostolic suc-
cession justification by faith and divine right of kings had simi-
larly served the interests of popes, protesters and monarchs.
One need but mention such principles as legitimacy, laissez-faire,
sound money, national self-determination, and security to be
reminded that "principle" as well as "patriotism has proved a
refuge for privileged groups, if not for scoundrels

Generally however, privilege-seekers have had difficulty with
principles. Finding them unequally useful in all situations, they
have often been obliged to hedge and have opened themselves
to the charge of hypocrisy. Business men have frequently suf-
fered embarrassment in this regard. When threatened with so-
cial legislation in behalf of their employees or the consuming
public they have stoutly defended the principle that government
should keep its hands out of business. Nevertheless they have
held it to be perfectly legitimate for the government to enact
protective tariffs and other regulatory legislation favorable to
their interests. Similarly, Pennsylvania Klansmen who were in-
terested in the supremacy of native Protestants and who con-
sequently praised the principle of popular control of education
in Oregon and other Protestant areas, found it undesirable to
be consistent when Catholic districts voted control of the schools
into the hands of Catholic directors. Some Klansmen, faced with
the above dilemma, merely turned from the principle of popular
control to that of separation of church and state, claiming that
the latter applied in areas where Catholics were in the majonty.

That some Klansmen were aware of another way out is shown
by a few instances where they supported consolidation of school
districts In certain areas of Western Pennsylvania, Catholics
were largely segregated in the mining villages and in sections of
the mill towns. Consolidation often meant the joimng of these
Catholic islands with the heavily Protestant rural areas with the
result that Protestant control was increased. The instances where
the Klan supported consolidation were practically all of this nature

138

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

and there were a few cases where the local Klans opposed con-
solidation because the resulting situation would have been re-
versed." Thus Klansmen found in the manipulation of school
districts a way to save the principle of popular control without
the sacrifice of Protestant control.

It was this same desire to preserve both principle and privi-
lege which prompted the Klan to commit itself officially to the
support of a Federal Department of Education with a cabinet
secretary at its head and with wide supervisory powers over the
nation's schools.*

The widely circulated Klan pamphlet, The Public School
Problem in America, in which Imperial Wizard Evans advocated
this proposal, reveals the reasons prompting his action. While
he was not unaware that "national aid" to America's public
schools might mean a heavier subsidy for education in the im-
poverished sections of the South and thus please southern Klans-
men, the most obvious consideration that made him advocate cen-
tralized educational control was the fact that Catholics were op-
posed to it. "The hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church," he
wrote, "stands against America on this issue." He asserted that
the Church was hostile because such a Department would even-
tually mean the closing of more than six thousand Catholic paro-
chial elementary schools. Whether or not he exaggerated Cath-
olic fear of increased federal control, it is clear that his support
for it was largely based upon an analysis of the situation which
can be summarized as follows : A growing Catholic population
in certain sections of the United States threatened to place the
control of the public schools of these areas in Catholic hands.
The country as a whole, however, was still Protestant and Prot-
estants consequently could still control federal policies. The
time had come, therefore, to give the federal government more
power over education.

This discussion of principles was confined to those who had
to answer for the Order and publicly defend it against hostile
criticism. Most Pennsylvania Klansmen did not concern them-

*This proposal had been advocated for some years by the National Educational Asso-
ciation and had the support of such other groups as the Anaerican Federation of Labor,
the General Federation of Women's Clubs and the League of Women Voters. It was
put before Congress in the form of the Stirling-Towner Bill (later the Stirling-Reed Bill).
The Klan supported these measures in its publications.

The Klan and the Schools

139

selves with underlying principles or worry about possible incon-
sistencies. They were satisfied to know that the public schools
which they and their parents before them had attended were
considered "the Hope of the Nation and the Palladium of our
Liberties"^ and that Catholics, where they possessed sufficient
wealth, usually maintained separate schools of their own.

A survey of the educational activities of the Klan in Pennsyl-
vania shows that a public school was accepted by Klansmen as
genuinely "American" if it met but four requirements. These
requirements eloquently reveal the fact that Klansmen generally
in Pennsylvania were recruited from the class of men who, while
narrowly dogmatic with regard to certain externals, were easily
satisfied if these were present. These criteria were (1) regular
Bible reading as prescribed by law but made from an accepted
Protestant edition of the scripture, (2) the prominent display
of the American flag, (3) the absence of Catholics from the teach-
ing staff, and (4) the absence of any recognized symbols of
Catholic 'or foreign origin in the equipment or activities of the
school. It is safe to say that few local Klans were disturbed about
the public schools where these requirements were met. The ex-
istence of short, eight-months school terms did not trouble them;
inadequacies of curricula or of plant did not stimulate protesting
Klan delegations to visit boards of directors; no crosses were
burned or pressure put upon school officials in behalf of increased
school budgets, more adequate teacher preparation, or the estab-
lishment of kindergartens and evening classes for adults. Of
course there were cases where local Klans actually supported con-
structive educational programs. In Greensburg, for example, the
Klan supported a bond issue for the erection of a new High
School building which might otherwise have been defeated, but
in this instance as in the cases previously cited where local
branches of the Order supported consolidation, the initiative was
not taken by the Klans. School authorities or other organizations
took the lead and the Klan merely cooperated.

The Order did take the initiative, however, in seeing that their
four criteria of "American" public schools were maintained. In
regard to daily Bible reading, specific cases of Klan action to
enforce this requirement came to the attention of the county
superintendents of education in only ten of the twenty-two coun-

140

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

ties surveyed but not all cases of this kind reached the ear of
the county officials. There were a few instances where Protestant
teachers were warned of laxness in this matter. Most of the
cases, however, involved Catholic teachers, all of whom were
suspected by Klansmen of un-American practices and were con-
sequently watched. Protestant children in their class-rooms were
used as informers and Klansmen were usually glad to find ir-
regular practices which confirmed their suspicions and which
made good propaganda for the teacher's dismissal.

Since the Pennsylvania School Code required the reading of
at least ten verses of scripture daily without comment, laxness
in this regard was seized upon as a subject for protest to the
local school authorities and as ground upon which to base a de-
mand, if not for the teacher's immediate dismissal, at least for
his meticulous observance of the law during the remainder of
the school term and for his replacement the following year.

While there was nothing in the law requiring the use of any
specific translation of the Scripture, Klansmen had a decided
prejudice against the "Catholic Bible." While most Klansmen
had never seen a copy of the commonly used Rheims-Douay
translation, and could not mention specific differences between it
and the accepted Protestant versions, still they thought it "sub-
versive" and "sectarian." Indeed, most Protestants shared this
opinion and one of the quickest ways to turn the average Prot-
estant community against a Catholic teacher and make his re-
election impossible was to have the report spread that he was
using "the Catholic Bible" in his school-room.

A typical instance of Klan activity in connection with Bible
reading happened in Donegal Township, Westmoreland County.*
In one of the rural schools of that township the teacher was
known to be a Catholic. The Klansmen decided to investigate.
Several students whom they had selected as watchers reported
that what they supposed to be the scripture reading was read
from a book that wasn't the Bible and that the teacher always
put the book she used in her desk where none of the students
could see it. Klansmen immediately spread the news and visited
the school board. Several school directors favored immediate
dismissal. It was decided to ask the advice of the county school
officials in Greensburg. The assistant superintendent to whom

The Klan and the Schools

141

the matter was referred, when he inquired about the proof avail-
able to substantiate the charge, found that there was none except
the statements of the school children. The local Klan promised
to secure an investigating committee and sent to East Hunting-
don Township for several Klansmen who were not known in
Donegal. These visiting Klansmen and the assistant county
superintendent paid an unannounced visit to the school-room of
the teacher in question and listened to the opening exercise. True
to the report, the book from which she read had colored board
covers and in appearance was quite unlike the usual family Bible.
The scripture passage read sounded authentic, however. In order
not to make the object of their visit too obvious, the men re-
mained during several class recitations. Meanwhile one of them
casually asked to see the book from which the morning scripture
had been read. To the amusement of the county of?icial and
somewhat to the dismay of the Klansmen, it was found to be a
little book of Bible Readings for Schools edited by a former
(Protestant) State Superintendent of Public Instruction, Nathan
C. Schaeffer. The fact that their concern proved unwarranted
and the reported violation of the school law proved untrue did
not embarrass the Donegal Klansmen. They achieved their
purpose anyway for enough sentiment had been created in the
township against the teacher that her re-election became in-
advisable.

If Protestants regarded the "Catholic Bible" as inaccurate
and sectarian, it is equally true that Catholics were taught to
consider the usual Protestant translations textually erroneous and
unsafe. While most Catholic teachers in Protestant districts
were careful not to disturb their patrons by using the transla-
tion sanctioned by the Catholic Church, others preferred to do
so even though a risk was involved. Two teachers employed in
Collier Township, Allegheny County, illustrate the latter group.
The school-room of one of these teachers was used as a voting
place on election days. It was on such a day in 1924 that a
Rheims-Douay edition of the Bible was discovered in the desk
of this teacher. News of this discovery spread rapidly and the
local Klan sent a committee to the school directors to make a
strong protest. Sentiment against both Catholic teachers be-
came so hostile that the directors knew it would mean their sub-

142 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

sequent defeat if they voted to re-employ them. Although guilty
of no legal offense and rated among the best teachers of Alle-
gheny County, they had no alternative except to seek employment
in a district where Catholics were given an equal chance with
Protestants for positions. But three such districts existed in
Allegheny County outside the city of Pittsburgh when the Klan
was at its height."

School officials reported other instances varying but slightly
from this in Adams, Armstrong, Centre, Chester, Clarion, Clin-
ton, Dauphin, Juniata and Pike Counties. Although the total
number of cases reported was not large, in a majority of the
instances the services of the teachers involved were terminated
at the close of the school term. In many local districts of the
stale there were no Catholic teachers employed and Klansmen
in these districts were denied the privilege of defending Amer-
ican school children from "the servants of the Pope." As a
substitute for that more exciting activity, perhaps, Klansmen
presented Bibles to a few schools. The Women of the Ku Klux
Klan, however, were more generous than the men's Order in
this particular.

While the insistence of Klansmen upon daily Bible reading
was not without point as a means to preserve the Protestant
tradition of the open Bible, still it is doubtful if many school
children regarded it as such or were affected in their religious
attitudes by this practice in the way Klansmen supposed. Many
other things in the school program had a greater effect upon
the spiritual development of the children than routine Bible
reading. Klansmen gave little evidence, however, that they were
aware of this and were seldom disturbed unless this all too
superficial practice was omitted.

In addition to their requirement of Bible reading they de-
manded the presence of the country's flag in the "American"
public school and usually took pains to see that it was promi-
nently displayed. Here again Klansmen revealed their mental
age by confining their attention largely to externals. Believing
as did everyone else that the public schools should teach patriotism,
they contented themselves by emphasizing the external rituals
of flag raising and saluting and the practice of repeating the oath
of allegiance. Most Klansmen distinguished not at all between

The Klan and the Schools

143

the symbols and the substance of patriotism or at least gave
little outward evidence of such discrimination. They suspected
anyone who questioned the great importance which they placed
upon this ritualism in the making of patriots and thought of
patriotism as the acceptance of such shibboleths as "love of
liberty" and "loyalty to the past" and to "the Constitution." The
Americanism of any who critically evaluated the nation's culture
and policies and were discriminating in their praise of American
tradition was suspected. Klansmen failed to recognize that people
of widely varying ideas of what was good for the nation might
all be sincerely loyal citizens and denied the patriotism of all
whose ideas differed substantially from their own mental stereo-
types.

In their demand for the display of the American flag in the
public schools the local Klans met with no opposition and had
to get what satisfaction they could by donating flags to selected
schools. One Exalted Cyclops^* in the Cumberland Valley boasted
that his organization had set aside ten per cent of its income
as a fund with which to purchase flags and an occasional Bible.
When new buildings were being dedicated, Klansmen usually
tried to get a place on the dedicatory program by offering to
donate an American flag. There were many cases where this
was done, often with appropriate remarks about one hundred
per cent Americanism, and always with the hope that the students
over whom it would wave might remember the Order which
made the presentation.

Rarely was there as much emotional excitement connected with
these flag raisings as with activities which aroused opposition
although Klansmen were considerably stirred in Adams and sur-
rounding counties over the refusal of one teacher who was op-
posed to the Order to use a flag which had been donated by the
local Klan." Another exception to these usually uneventful
ceremonies occurred in Slocum Township, Luzerne County, where
a near riot was precipitated when anti-Klan elements resisted the
participation of robed Klansmen in a school dedication.^^ Of
the thirteen counties in which Klan flag donations were reported
by school officials," Washington County had the largest number.
Chester County had but one such event. The practice itself, while

144

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

resulting in some publicity for the Order, lacked sufficient thrill
to be popular. Moreover, presentable flags were expensive.

Another external criterion of an authentic American public
school as defined by the Klan was the absence of Catholics upon
its teaching staff. This opposition of Klansmen to Catholic
teachers was apparently due less to religious than to patriotic
considerations. Teachers who accepted the claims of an ecclesias-
tical hierarchy which, according to Klansmen, asserted the right
"to think for mankind" and to turn people into "puppets in-
stead of independent and self-governing minds"" were held to
be poor defenders of democratic government, poor guardians of
American liberties. Klansmen admitted that not all Catholic
teachers were teaching "dangerous and subversive doctrines."
When questioned by the writer regarding specific Catholic teach-
ers in their own communities Klansmen usually had no proof
that anything undesirable was being taught. On the other hand,
they asked. Why take the risk? The allegiance which faithful
Catholics gave to their Church made them potentially dangerous.
The complaint of these Klansmen was not that Catholics obeyed
the voice of God rather than the command of the State when
the two were in conflict. Protestants, too, had never been slow
to violate civil laws that were in conflict with conscience. Indeed,
Protestantism had survived largely by violation of early laws
which required religious uniformity and which placed heavy penal-
ties upon dissenters. Witness also the Protestant abolitionists
who violated the fugitive slave laws which they considered iniqui-
tous. The danger was not in obedience to God rather than to
man. It lay in the fact that pronouncements which Klansmen
were sure had originated in Rome were believed by Catholics to
have originated in Heaven.

This difiPerence was basic and insurmountable. The doctrine
of an authoritative Church or teaching hierarchy headed by the
Pope, established by God to transmit inerrant truth lay at the
heart of Catholicism and was rejected completely by most of the
Protestant sects which, even if holding to the doctrine of an
inerrant Bible, were necessarily obliged to fall back upon the
consensus of opinion of their communicants for its interpretation.
So fundamental was this dii¥erence in its efifect not only upon
church organization but, by inference, upon people's attitudes

The Klan and the Schools

145

toward all democratic institutions that Catholics had found it
virtually impossible to secure teaching positions in strongly Prot-
estant communities even before the Klan was organized. In
Juniata County, for instance, there had been but two Catholic
teachers prior to the Klan. In York County there had seldom
been more than six ; in Franklin County, rarely more than eight ;
in Dauphin County, rarely more than three and in Cumberland
County seldom even that many.

When Catholic teachers with high professional ratings were dis-
missed because of Klan hostility to their religious affiliation as
in the Collier Township instance mentioned above, school officials
often tried to locate them in other less hostile districts. The re-
sult was that in a large part of the state the percentage of
Catholic teachers employed did not vary appreciably from 1921
to 1932." This was true even in Allegheny County with its
numerous Klans and mixed Catholic-Protestant population. The
same was true in Carbon County in spite of its mining villages
with Catholic populations. In Mifflin County there was no varia-
tion nor was there in Clarion, Washington and Bedford Counties.
In York County Catholic teachers remained five in number during
most of the period. Berks County is typical of a group of
counties in which Catholic teachers varied by two or three from
year to year but this had been characteristic of these counties
long before the Klan had come into them. In Westmoreland
County, while the number of Catholic teachers hired during the
period of Klan ascendancy was substantially smaller, by 1932 the
percentage was practically the same as it had been in 1921.
Although this survey of the counties is not complete, it is a
sufficiently wide sampling to show that while the Klan undoubt-
edly did have a temporary effect in tightening the religious lines
on the question of employing Catholic public school teachers and
in changing somewhat the distribution of Catholic teachers, it
altered very little the number employed within the state as a
whole.

As a final safeguard of the public schools Klansmen insisted
that there be no symbols of popery or "alienism" flouted before
American school children. Belonging to an "invisible empire"
with secret signs and passwords and exposed to a propaganda
which surrounded them with un-American influences, the more

146 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

excitable Klansmen can be understood if not excused when they
imagined that they saw many evidences of the secret plotting
of their opponents and struck more or less blindly at them.
Illustrative of their nervous suspicion was their excitement over
the engraving resembling a cross on one corner of an issue of
United States currency which became to them prima facie evi-
dence that the Pope was influential in the national government.
The hasty inference that the editors of the Literary Digest were
Catholics because they had repeated "the wild-eyed charges" of
Klan guilt in the Mer Rouge murders of 1923 and gave no
prominence to the later grand jury exoneration is another in-
stance. Quite similar was the opposition of the Uniontown Klan
to the use of a textbook in the schools of that place because it
contained a design which they believed was symbolic of the
supremacy of the Roman Church. In New Kensington a protest
was lodged by the local Klan against the use of An American
History by D. S. Muzzey on the allegation that Professor
Muzzey had called Washington a rebel. A few other histories
suffered Klan criticism because their authors had given aid or
comfort to Catholics and foreigners." Of the instances reported,
there were less than four per cent where the criticism resulted
in a change of textbook although in Uniontown Superintendent
of Schools Proctor was obliged to withdraw because, in part, he
had opposed the Klan in this matter.

One of the most humorous instances of this type of Klan ac-
tivity occurred in Greensburg. In the high school building was
hung a large reproduction of the Doge, the well-known portrait
by Bellini. To Klansmen familiar with occasional pictures of
Pius XI in the rotogravure sections of the Sunday newspaper,
the Doge, garbed in the flowing robes of an Italian prince of the
fifteenth century, looked suspiciously like a Catholic churchman.
The rumor spread that it was a picture of one of the Popes and
that Catholics were secretly exulting in that fact. The local
Klan took action and notified school officials of their disapproval
of the portrait and asked that it be removed. Assured that they
were mistaken about the identity of the painting, they were still
suspicious. Work of art or no work of art, pope or no pope
they asked that it come down. The High School principal
obliged them and the portrait was finally taken to the office of

The Klan and the Schools

147

the Superintendent of Schools where fewer people would look
upon it as a subtle means of influencing young people to honor
the Roman Church."

The chief educational result of the Ku Klux Klan in Penn-
sylvania was its effect not upon the public schools and their
students but upon the Klansmen themselves. The minds of these
men were focused for a considerable period upon the old nativist
subjects, particularly upon the threat of Rome. The old charges
were all repeated, the old fears again revived increasing in con-
viction with every repetition. Not only was the cumulative effect
of the rehearsal of the private fears of individual Klansmen upon
the group as a whole productive of this result but the encourage-
ment given by the national officials considerably enhanced it.

The Imperial ofifice maintained a national lecture bureau begin-
ning in March of 1924 which in five months had provided speakers
who gave a total of 197,764 addresses to men and 21,255 to
women and mixed audiences," of which Pennsylvania received its
share. After 1924 this lecture bureau was absorbed in a National
Department of Education and Publicity which not only continued
to maintain speakers in the state but edited the official Klan
periodicals and prepared lectures to be read in the local Klaverns.
It had an ambitious program of activities but it proved so ex-
pensive that it was soon curtailed. Only one series of lectures,
nine in number, on "The Fundamentals of Citizenship"^^ was
written and either they had a very narrow distribution in Penn-
sylvania or the memory of Klansmen is poor for few had even
heard of them. An official periodical was published for distribu-
tion in the state called The Keystone American but in spite of
official insistence.^" so few Klansmen subscribed that it was
soon discontinued. Attention was then centered upon the publica-
tion of the national monthly Kourier Magazine which was en-
larged to include news items from each of the realms in the
empire. It continued to be published during the entire period
from the time of its establishment to the present (1936). While
it was more conservatively edited than the radical Fellowship
Forum to which many Pennsylvania Klansmen had subscribed,
nevertheless the type of material it printed undoubtedly magnified
the differences between Protestants and Catholics, natives and
foreign-born and made it more difficult to secure that practical

148

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

working compromise which was necessary as long as they lived
together. Seeds were generously sown for another outburst of
nativist activity if circumstances ever again became propitious.

References

1. "The Obligation of American Citizens to Free Public Schools." Title Page con-
taining "With the compliments of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan." No Date; p. 3.

2. Quoted in Garrison's; "Catholicism and the American Mind." (Chicago, 1928)
p. 137.

3. Brownson, O. A.: "Brownson's Views" p. 64.

4 Burns J. H. ; "Growth and Development of the Catholic School System in the
United States" (N. Y. 1917) p. 222.

5. Evans, H. W.: "The Public School Problem in America." No date.

6. Instances where the Klan favored consolidation in Washington County were re-
ported by S. v. Kimberland ; in Clarion County, by N. E. Heeter ; Superintendent G.
C. Brosius reported that the Klan opposed consolidation in sections of Clinton County.

7. "The Church of Rome in American Politics." Small Klan folder, undated.

8. Two members of the committee who visited the school reported the incident to the
writer.

9. Ass't Supt. S. H. Replogle, of Allegheny County, who reported this mcident said
that the Klan did little more than intensify the anti-Catholic feeling which had long
existed in large areas of that county.

10. Mr. Klapper, for several years Exalted Cyclops of Shippensburg Klan.

11. The school referred to is Ortana, located near Gettysburg. Mr. Klapper is the
authority for the incident.

12. Reported by Dr. Lee Driver, Director of School Consolidation of the State Depart-
ment of Public Instruction.

13. Armstrong, Adams, Allegheny, Bedford, Berks, Cameron, Chester, Clarion, Dauphin,
Juniata, Lackawanna, Luzerne and Washington Counties.

14. "The Obligation of American Citizens to Free Public Schools" pp. 14, 15.

15. This information was secured by means of a questionnaire filled in by the County
Superintendents of Education or their assistants in each of the counties named.

16. These history texts were:

Hall, J.: Our Ancestors in Europe.

McLaughlin & VanTyne- A History of the United States for Schools.
Guitteau, W. B.: Our United States Hisfory.

Atkinson: An Introduction to American History: European Beginnings.

17. Reported by Superintendent March of the Greensburg Schools.

18. Proceedings of the Second Imperial Klonvokation, pp. 208-209.

19. The "Kourier Magazine," December, 1924, p. 9.

20. Minutes of the State Klorero, Dec. 6, 1924, p. 8.

CHAPTER 10

The Women of the Ku Klux Klan

As the success of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan made it
apparent that the time was ripe for a new nativist movement, it
was almost inevitable that an attempt would be made to organize
the "ladies" as well as the "knights." Indeed, at the first Imperial
Klonvokation in November of 1922, the "Knights" raised and dis-
cussed the question of sponsoring an official women's order. Evi-
dence was presented that haste would be required if serious com-
petition was to be avoided for already numerous eft'orts were
being made to get such an organization under way.

It would have been easier to have recognized one of these
established groups but, feeling that some prestige might be lost
from the fact that the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan had not
been its originator, it was decided not to "recognize, aid or assist"
any existing women's nativist society. Instead, a committee was
appointed to investigate the possibility of fostering a new order
which would combine as many of the others as possible but which
Klansmen could claim to have been instituted and officially en-
dorsed by their own Order.

The committee thus established asked the existing women's
groups to send representatives to a conference in Washington in
June, 1923 to consider the advisability of combining their efforts
in such a new Klan-sponsored order. Some of them came and
after balancing older loyalties against the practical advantage of
having the active aid of a large and growing men's organization,
it was voted to prepare a petition asking the Knights of the Ku
Klux Klan for the right to use its name and as much of its con-
stitution and ritual as they might wish in the formation of a new
women's order. The Imperial Kloncilium of the Klan, con-
veniently meeting at the same time and place, granted the petition
and promised the hearty cooperation and support of the men's
Order.

Chartered shortly thereafter in the state of Arkansas under the
name of "Women of the Ku Klux Klan," the Order adopted with

150 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

minor modifications the constitution of the men's Order as well as
a ritual practically identical with that of their sponsor. Mrs.
Lulu A. Markwell became the chief executive officer with the
title of Imperial Commander.

Organizers were immediately put in the field on the same com-
mission basis as were the men's Kleagles. The initial donation
was five dollars — only half that collected from the men. Four
dollars was kept in the State and was divided between the Kleagle
in charge and her subordinates. The remaining dollar of each
donation was sent to maintain the national headquarters at Little
Rock, Arkansas. Beginning without funds, the Women of the
Ku Klux Klan enjoyed for some time a subsidy from the men's
Order to meet the expenses of propagation. It was not long,
however, until the Little Rock headquarters was showing a profit.
The first financial statement made public to the men's Order on
September 25, 1924, showed cash in bank to the amount of $136,-
767 and an additional $60,433 in real estate and other tangible
property.^

Considerable attention was given to the task of getting as many
other women's nativist societies as possible to merge themselves
in this new organization. The investigating committee set up
by the men's Order in 1922 had found over a score of these
societies in existence. One of the most important was the women's
order which Colonel W. J. Simmons had sponsored. The open
hostility which broke out between the Evans and the Simmons
factions within the men's order added an extra impetus to Evans
and his followers in their efifort to absorb the women's organiza-
tion of their rival, and much money was put into the enterprise.

The women of the Ku Klux Klan experienced a struggle for
the control of the national office somewhat similar to that which
disturbed the men's organization. Mrs. Markwell, the first Im-
perial Commander, was annoyed with a growing factionalism
among her subordinates — allegedly stimulated by certain imperial
officers of the men's Order who wished to have more control
over her office.^ Her duties became so unpleasant that she finally
consented to resign. On February 16, 1924, Miss Robbie Gill,
who had served under Mrs. Markwell as Secretary of the Order,*

*It will be remembered that H. W. Evans who replaced W. J. Simmons as Imperial
Wizard of the Men's Order, had likewise been Secretary of the Order under Colonel
Simmons.

The Women of the Ku Klux Klan

151

was elevated to the office of Commander over the head of Miss
Cloud who had been Vice-Commander and who expected to com-
plete the unexpired term of Mrs. Markwell. Miss Cloud chal-
lenged Miss Gill's right to the office of Commander and the matter
was not settled until it had been taken to the civil court. The
outcome was that Miss Gill continued as the chief executive.
This was satisfactory to the men's Order for Miss Gill, who was
soon to become the wife of J. A. Comer, a prominent member
of the Executive Council of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan,
was more amenable to suggestions of that body than her com-
petitor for the office would have been.

Organizers were first sent into the strongest Klan states im-
mediately after the chartering of the Women's Order. In Penn-
sylvania, recruiting began in 1924 although it was not until Jan-
uary of the following year that the Order was recognized as an
incorporated institution by the State and was granted the legal
right to operate as such within the Commonwealth. Mrs. Mary
I. Goodwin was made Major Kleagle in charge of organizing the
state and established her first headquarters in Pittsburgh. The
Knights of the Ku Klux Klan were asked to cooperate. Sam D.
Rich, Grand Dragon of the men's order and A. L. Cotton, one
of his chief recruiting officers, were glad to do so for a consider-
ation. When the agreement was reached, specifying that each
of them would receive one dollar for every Klanswoman who came
into the Order through their office, they sent word to all their
klaverns urging the men to encourage establishment of this
woman's official branch of the Klan by bringing their own women
folk into it. Apparently their effort was fruitful for, as Mr.
Cotton later remarked, "It was some of the easiest money I ever
made."

In return for this cooperation, Mrs. Goodwin, when she selected
her own Kleagles to work on a commission basis, appointed the
wives of many of the prominent Klan officials. Mrs. A. L.
Cotton, for example, was chosen and with little effort turned in
the names and klectokens of many wives and sisters of the men
whom her husband had recruited for the men's organization, keep-
ing, of course, the tvv'o dollar commission per member to swell
the family income. Mrs. William Davis likewise followed her
husband into Westmoreland and Fayette Counties. Many Exalted

152 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

Cyclops of influence, when the Realm office urged the establish-
ment of the women's Order, worked their wives into positions as
local Kleagles.

It was of first importance to keep the good will of the leaders
of the men's Order, for when their friendship was lost, as hap-
pened in several instances, their hostility spread to the local klan-
tons with the result that recruiting in these areas was seriously
hindered. When, after paying commissions to Rich and Cotton
for over a year, Mrs. Goodwin decided to discontinue this prac-
tice and handle all the recruiting through her own Kleagles, the
men's office suddenly lost its interest in the women's Order. Even
the tactful appointment of women relatives as Kleagles did not
altogether renew it. More ill will was engendered when, in an
effort to increase funds which were available for her to use,
Mrs. Goodwin attempted to reduce the amount of commission
which these same relatives received as Kleagles. In Philadelphia,
Mrs. Daisy Douglas Barr had been authorized to establish a re-
cruiting office. Mrs. Barr had been a very successful Kleagle
in Indiana and the national office had rewarded her with a fresh
field in which to work. Mrs. Goodwin was also obliged to give
her one dollar commission on each member brought in under
her direction.

Besides the personal appeals of the Kleagles, many public micet-
ings were held to attract women who might not otherwise have
been interested in the Order. Several of the lecturers used most
frequently were men who had been prominent in the men's Order.
One of them, Judge Orbison, was an imperial officer of that
Order. Another, Rev. J. R. Clark, of Pittsburgh, had been the
first minister in the state to become a Klan lecturer. The danger
of the Catholic hierarchy to American institutions was the most
popular and effective subject used to arouse their audiences, and
occasional addresses by alleged ex-nuns were sponsored by the
Order. It was found advisable, however, to discontinue using
ex-nuns in communities where there was a considerable Catholic
population and where the Protestant group was fairly well in-
formed.

The activities of the Women of the Ku Klux Klan paralleled
closely those of the men's Order. In political affairs, the Klans-
women generally did not take the initiative in the choice of can-

The Women of the Ku Klux Klan

153

didates or in the planning of campaigns. They usually followed
the advice of the men and there were many political observers who
thought that Klanswomen could be relied upon to vote as a bloc
with more assurance than could Klansmen. Certainly the women's
Klaverns were invaded as often as were the men's by hopeful
candidates who, if they satisfied the racial, national, and denomi-
national requirements which the Klan had set up, were given full
opportunity to play upon the nativist sympathies of the women
which they usually did to the neglect of every other issue. While
this was not always effective, it sometimes resulted in the election
of unscrupulous candidates simply because they were white, na-
tive-born Protestants. In Fayette County, for instance, there was
elected as sheriff a man whose general moral and civic qualifica-
tions were of the lowest and who, while in office, turned out to
be one of the worst criminals who ever disgraced that county.
Without question he won the election only because Klansmen and
Klanswomen had allowed nativist prejudice to obscure more im-
portant considerations.

Religiously, the Women of the Ku Klux Klan had less in-
fluence upon the organized church than had the men's Order.
While it participated in church visitations, it was not as hungry
for publicity as the men's Order primarily because it was not
obliged to do so to get the attention of those whom it wished to
recruit. Most of the visitations, therefore, were cooperative enter-
prises only, in which the initiative was taken by the Klansmen.

The educational activities of the women's Order were limited
chiefly to its own members and came not directly as a planned
program of the state or national office, but indirectly as a by-
product of the lectures which the women attended in their recruit-
ing campaigns and the gossip to wliich they listened in Klavern
meetings. There was no official magazine published by 'the
women's Order. Klanswomen were urged, however, as were the
Klansmen, to read and distribute such publications as The Fel-
lowship Forum. The women's Klan, initiated in Pennsylvania
almost three years later than the men's, was still busy with the
problem of recruiting more members when the organization began
to disintegrate. So busy were its leaders in enlisting women in
what was to be a great patriotic, educational, and religious cru-
sade, that the crusade itself had hardly been started, — indeed had

154 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

hardly been conceived of except in the broadest general terms, —
when internal dissention absorbed its energies and rapidly caused
its destruction.

While the foregoing is true in regard to the political, religious
and educational phases of their work, there was one activity in
which the Klanswomen were relatively successful, namely, in their
charities. Locall}', the women's Klaverns generally, in proportion
to their numbers, were more active in distributing food and
raising money for needy people, than were the men. Collectively
the Klanswomen initiated and carried to successful completion the
establishment of a Klan orphanage named Pennsylvania Klan
Haven. Mrs. Mary Goodwin, the first state Commander, was
especially interested in the project. On several occasions she ad-
vanced her own private funds to meet obligations on the property
when the limited resources of the Order were insufficient.

The property as originally purchased, comprised an estate of
twenty-three and a fraction acres, part of which was woodland
and part fruit trees, located east of Harrisburg. On it also stood
a commodious stone house and a substantial barn. Klanswomen
were told that the owner of this property had had an offer of
$100,000 made to him by a Catholic priest but preferred to sell
it to the Klan for $55,000. Of this price a down payment of
$5,000 was made and the balance was divided into installments.
The orphanage had the approval of the Pinchot administration
which issued a charter to operate the institution under the cor-
porate name of Klan Haven Association.

The Association functioned through its own Board of Directors,
secretary, treasurer, matron, and caretaker. Money raised in the
various women's Klans over the state was sent directly to the
treasurer of the Association whose accounts were regularly
audited and checked by Mrs. Goodwin's office. The Klanswomen
over the state undertook the maintenance of Klan Haven with
considerable enthusiasm. Over forty children were soon placed
there, some being privately maintained, some being placed there
by court order and kept at public expense, and others being sup-
ported entirely through Klan benevolence. Meetings were held
by the women for the specific purpose of raising funds for Klan
Haven. Visitations were made to the grounds in order to in-
crease interest in the institution and many gifts of food and cloth-

The Women of the Ku Klux Klan

155

ing for the children were collected in the local Klaverns over the
state and brought to Harrisburg.

Much gloom was thrown over the enterprise when the stone
dwelling which housed the children accidentally caught on fire
and burned on November 21, 1926. This made it necessary to
rent quarters where the forty-six children who were being cared
for at the time of the fire might be kept. A building called "Old
Colonial Inn," on the river front north of Harrisburg was finally
secured for this purpose. The insurance on the burned building
was sufficient to permit the payment of a $15,000 indebtedness
which remained against the property. With this paid and with
what was left of Klan Haven free of encumbrance, the women
set to work immediately to raise sufficient funds to rebuild.

Those in charge of the men's Order who had been urged to
aid in the support of Klan Haven from the time of its charter-
ing had been half-hearted in their cooperation. This was chiefly
because Mrs. Goodwin had not consented to their request that
the men's Order be given joint control of the Association. The
men had held that they should be represented on the Board of
Directors if they contributed toward its support. Mrs. Goodwin
wished Klan Haven to remain an institution managed by the
women's Order and held out stubbornly against what she felt was
an effort on the part of a few of the men in authority to get
control of the funds of Klan Haven Association. In addition to
this danger, Mrs. Goodwin had to contend with what was ap-
parently a determined effort by a group within her own national
organization to force this joint control above mentioned and, what
was even worse in her judgment, to have the title to the property
surrendered to the national organization as soon as it had been
fully paid for by the state.

That Mrs. Goodwin was justified in her fears was amply proved
by subsequent events. When she refused to comply with the
wishes of the men's Order and of her own national office, steps
were taken to remove her from her position as head of the Penn-
sylvania office. James A. Comer who, as husband of the Imperial
Commander of the Women of the Ku Klux Klan and as Imperial
Klonsel for the Order, was virtually dictating its policies, took
the lead in ousting Mrs. Goodwin. She was subjected to a bar-
rage of criticism from the national office. She was charged with

156 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

accepting gifts, a practice which, she was told, the national office
had ruled against, even though Mrs. Comer herself had accepted
them.^ She was censured for delay in chartering Klans in the
state* even though she was instructed not to send in applications
for charters until the local membership of these Klans was ten
per cent of the population of the area involved. Indeed, the na-
tional office had sent Mrs. Claudia Goodrich (a sister of H. W.
Evans) into Pennsylvania to take charge of this work. Mrs.
Goodwin was given contradictory orders and charged with the
misuse of funds. When in October, 1926, she offered her
resignation to Mrs. Comer, it was not accepted but several months
later her successor. Miss Martha Turnley, was appointed and sent
into the state to help destroy Mrs. Goodwin's influence among the
membership of the Order several weeks before Mrs. Goodwin
was notified that her resignation had finally been accepted.

Mrs. Goodwin's removal took place in January, 1927. On
April 22 following, the Board of Directors of Klan Haven As-
sociation met and had present as "advisers" James A. Comer; a
representative of the men's Order, Mr. C. B. Lewis; the two
attorneys of the Association ; and Mr. James Colescott of "Judge"
Comer's stafif. After these "advisers" had given a lengthy ex-
planation of the great program of the national office to establish
a uniform system of Klan Havens in all the states, the Board
was led to adopt this alleged- national policy and voted to re-
constitute the personnel of the Board of Directors.^ As re-
organized, the Board of Directors was to consist of the Imperial
Representative of the women's Order and the Grand Dragon of
the men's Order as ex-officio members, six representatives of the
men's Order (one from each Province) to be elected at their
annual Klorero and similarly chosen provincial representatives
from the women's Order.

A Committee was appointed and empowered to draw up a new
constitution and laws in accordance with this decision and, if
necessary, secure such changes in the charter as would permit
this organization.

In defense of this new arrangement, it was explained that every
Klansman and Klanswoman would thus actually become a member
of Klan Haven Association and be represented on the Board of
Directors. Actually, however, such an arrangement would have

The Women OF THE Ku Klux Klan 157

resulted in the men's Order getting control. For, while the men's
Order had already developed the provincial organization referred
to the women's Order had no provinces organized m the state
and had no assurance that the national office would approve their
establishment at this time. As actually set up, the Board of
Directors of the Association did include the heads of the men s
and women's Orders but substituted the first five grand officers
of each organization in place of the provincial representatives.

The difficulties which were experienced in the Klan Haven
affair were but one evidence of the growing dissatisfaction withm
the women's Order which, in January' of 1927, resulted m the
secession of the important Philadelphia and Chester Klaverns
from the national organization and which eventually led to the
disruption of the women's movement in eastern Pennsylvania.

The heart of the trouble was the inability of the state and
local organizations to get a satisfactory hearing when they dis-
agreed with the policies of their national office or to get redress
when they felt aggrieved. Like the men's organization, the Con-
stitution of the Women of the Ku Klux Klan had set up a
military type of government for the Order, with power highly
centralized in the national executive officers. After Robbie Gill s
election to the position of Imperial Commander, the Order rapidly
fell under the domination of James A. Comer and a few other high
officials of the men's Order who gave orders to the women almost
as freely as if they had had the constitutional right to do so.**

This interference of the men was resented by many of the
women in the Order. Glad for the cooperation of the Knights
of the Ku Klux Klan, the women were angered by what they felt
was an attempt of the men to dictate to them and to exploit them.
The Women of the Ku Klux Klan was set up as an autonomous
Order and they wished to have it remain so. The kind of diffi-
culties from which the local women's Klaverns suffered can be illus-
trated by the experiences of the Canwin Klan of Philadelphia, the
largest*** and most important, perhaps, in eastern Pennsylvania.

• men this Board of Directors organized in July 1927. it is '° ,°''th?'offic«

issued only by the proper women officials.

«**When chartered, in December, 1926, its membership was 1,400,

158 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

Mrs. Pearl Cantey was the organizer and executive head of this
Klan. The corresponding officer in the men's organization was
Paul M. Winter, field representative in charge of the Philadelphia
County Klaverns. On one occasion both the men's and women's
organizations had arranged to charter a boat for a trip down the
Delaware with the hope of clearing a profit from the sale of
tickets. This was done and from the crowded condition of the
boat, the sale of tickets was apparently successful. When the
time came to divide the profit, however, the women felt that the
men deliberately cheated them. The women's record book of
ticket sales was returned with pages torn out in order to make
an accounting of the amount due them impossible. Moreover,
the men alleged that many persons had gotten aboard the boat
without tickets and that some of the men who had been given
books of tickets to sell had lost them.®

On another occasion a hall was secured for a joint meeting of
the men and women with the understanding that both organiza-
tions would share alike in the expenses. After the women had
paid their share to Mr. Winter, who had made the financial ar-
rangements, they learned that he had represented the expense of
securing the auditorium as double its actual cost so that the
women had paid the entire bill instead of their proportionate
share.

More important than this financial exploitation in estranging
the men's and women's Orders in Philadelphia was the case of
Klansman Charles Lawrence who was charged with immoral re-
lations with two Klanswomen. Paul Winter himself had come to
Mrs. Cantey's office to lodge the charge against the women. Mrs.
Cantey agreed to investigate and subsequently suspended both the
women, one of whom confessed her misconduct. Expecting of
course that Mr. Winter would take similar action against the
Klansman involved, Mrs. Cantey and the members of her organi-
zation were angered to learn that he had taken no action against
Lawrence but had, instead, elevated him to the office of County
Treasurer of his Order.

With many comparable local irritations to make the women
doubt the good will, if not of the majority of Klansmen, at least
of their leaders, the situation became intolerable when members
of the men's Order began to interfere in the internal affairs of

The Women of the Ku Klux Klan 159

the women's Order itself. The change in Imperial Commanders
when Mrs. Markwell was replaced by Miss Robbie Gill, although
undoubtedly engineered by certain officials of the men's Order and
although somewhat irregular, was not a very disturbing element
in Pennsylvania. Miss Gill was personally quite an attractive
woman. Most of the state leaders who had had any contact
with her were charmed by her manner and address. The fact
that Mrs. Barr, whose methods many felt had been questionable,
was associated with the Markwell regime helped make the change
to Miss Gill acceptable in this state. Moreover, Mrs. Goodwm,
who had held the office of state organizer under Mrs. Markwell,
continued in office ; her conduct of affairs was approved and her
territory was extended to include New York state. After the
marriage of Miss Gill, however, her husband, James A. Comer,
became increasingly active in Pennsylvania affairs. When it be-
came apparent that this individual, under the title of Imperial
Klonsel, was attempting to get Klan Haven out of the control of
Mrs. Goodwin and her supporters, and when, in addition, it be-
came evident that he was determined to remove Mrs. Goodwin
from office, resentment against this male interference and^ against
the national office in general increased to sizable proportions.

The Pennsylvania women who attended the national Klonvoka-
tion held at Detroit in 1926, found the gathering virtually domi-
nated by this same James A. Comer and his colleague, James
Orbison, who sat on the platform and managed the procedure,
"putting the motions, snapping their fingers and rushing things
through.'"^ The chief business of this meeting was the submission
for approval of a revision of the Constitution of the women's
Order broadening the power of the national executive particularly
in the matter of the revocation of charters.

An attempt was made to disqualify the hostile delegation which
came to Detroit from Pennsylvania on the ground that they did
not have the correct dues cards with them. A long discussion
ensued in which the Pennsylvania representatives tried to gam
their voting privileges by showing that the national office ^was
really at fault. The new dues cards had not been sent out from
Little Rock but instead, instructions had been given to use the
old ones which they had brought. It was at this same meeting
that sixteen of the Pennsylvania delegates had tried to secure an

160 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

interview with the Imperial Commander but, when they came
for the interview, Mr. Comer himself was the only one who would
see them. Completely disgusted, Mrs. Cantey, who had repre-
sented her Philadelphia group, came home to describe the pro-
ceedings and urge a withdrawal from the national organization.

The difficulty which the Pennsylvania delegation had experi-
enced at the Detroit Klonvokation was partly occasioned by the
fact that Mr. James A. Comer's desire to remove Mrs. Goodwin
was already known and the Philadelphia group, as well as of
most of the Klans in the State, had come to support her. This
support was further shown at the first state meeting called by
Miss Turnley after her appointment and before Mrs. Goodwin
had been officially notified of her own replacement. The Phila-
delphia group led in the protest against what they considered an
unfair dismissal. Comer had gone to Philadelphia and called Mrs.
Cantey into conference on the evening preceding this meeting in
an effort to get her promise not to oppose his plans, but his re-
fusal to talk to her in the presence of the women she had brought
along from her own organization and the fact that he left her
waiting a long time before he chose to see her only served to add
to the ill-will of the women.

The result was that the next day at the State meeting Miss
Turnley faced a hostile Philadelphia delegation. The demand
was made that Mrs. Goodwin be brought in to receive a gift
of flowers which the women wished to give her. An open pro
test was lodged against Mr. Comer's presence in the meeting. It
was pointedly asked how he got the pass word necessary for
admittance since none but women could legally receive it. When
he retorted that he had advanced some $8,000 to get the women's
Order started and "owned it," the Philadelphia delegates left
the meeting. They were persuaded to return by a request from
Mrs. Goodwin herself. They came back only to be surprised and
chagrined to hear Mrs. Goodwin's own resignation read to them.
This was like having one's own general turn traitor. As Mrs.
Cantey remarked, "Here we had been fighting for her against the
attempt of the National to get her out and then she didn't have
nerve enough herself to carry it through." At a general meet-
ing of the Philadelphia Klan on January 22, 1927 the vote or;

The Women of the Ku Klux Klan

161

withdrawal was taken and passed with but one dissenting vote,
a decision which the Chester Klan had taken the preceding day.

For a time the women of the Philadelphia Klan continued to
meet as "The Women's Christian Patriotic League" which Mrs.
Cantey had chartered under her own name. Feeling ran so high
for some months afterwards that she kept constant guards in her
office to be secure against insult and possible raids upon her files.

The men's organization had also begun to have serious internal
strife which in Philadelphia and some western sections of the
state was carried to the extreme of violence. In Philadelphia
the revolt was chiefly against Paul M. Winter and his methods.
In western Pennsylvania a group of leading Klansmen had been
engaged in an attempt to secure Sam Rich's removal and to
reform the state office. Klaverns took sides and worked against
each other. In many instances factions developed within the local
organizations and a rapid decline in membership and in activities
had set in.

Since most of the women's Klans consisted of wives and sisters
of Klansmen, similar divisions inevitably grew in their organiza-
tions with the same results. Inquiries made to Klanswomen in
various sections of the state resulted in practically the same reply :
"We broke up when the men did." A few women met in each
other's homes a little while afterwards but they grew increasingly
inactive.

References

1 Report of T A. Comer to the Second Imperial Klonvokation of the Knights of the
Ku Klux Klan, September 25, 1924. Proceedings p. 112

2. Correspondence of Jessie Sauer to Mary I. Goodwin, February 29, 1924.

3. Interview with Mrs. Pearl Cantey who served as Kleagle in Reading, then in Phila-
delphia after Mrs. Barr's removal, and was later Excellent Commander of the

4 One^ telegram signed by Tames A. Comer read: "DO YOU REFUSE TO COMPLY
WITH ORDERS IN CONNECTION WITH CHARTERING IN PENNSYLVANIA
ANSWER YES OR NO STOP NO EXCUSE FOR SUCH DELAY." . .

5. Extracts from the Bulletin of the Annual Meeting of Klan Haven Association,
Harrisburg, Pa., April 22, 1927.

6. Testimony of Mrs. Pearl Cantey.

7. Report of Pearl Cantey to her Philadelphia Klan.

CHAPTER 11

The Decline of the Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania :
Dissatisfaction in the Eastern Province

You're "sick of the game?" Well, now, that's a
shame,

You're young and you're brave, arid you're bright;
You've had a "raw deal," I know, but don't squeal,
Buck up, do your damndest and fight.

— Quoted on the cover page of "The Kourier
Magazine," August, 1930.

The Knights of the Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania reached the
peak of its numerical strength early in 1925. The leaders then
claimed an approximate membership of 300,000 Klansmen but
refused to be definite as to the exact number or to give any proof
of the accuracy of their approximation. There is considerable
reason to believe that their claim was exaggerated. It might more
accurately represent the total number of Klansmen who had joined
the Order up to the end of that year for there were hardly more
than 200,000 — at most 260,000 — in good standing at any time
within the realm. The decline after 1925 was rapid and is shown
by the following table :^

Klan Membership in Pennsylvania

1926 71,177

1927 31,099

1928 18,916

1929 10,428

1930 4,279

In an attempt to explain this decline, it is useful to recall the
general circumstances which led to the rapid growth of the Order.
First, there was the fact that the traditional mental stereotypes
of Pope, Catholic, foreigner, "nigger" and Jew which thousands

Dissatisfaction in the Eastern Province

163

of Americans held were such as to engender fear and hatred
of them. Then there was the fact that the Klan offered an
avenue of escape from the monotony which characterized life in
the average village or rural community. There was also the fact
that the economic readjustment wliich followed the war resulted
in increased competition for jobs and made many people eager
to find a convenient scape-goat upon whom to lay the blame for
their declining fortunes. Finally, there was the post-war hysteria
which found a negative expression in the fear and hatred of all
things that were foreign or different, whether the difference be
in race, nationality or culture.*

Had conditions changed after 1925 so that these factors which
produced the Klan no longer existed or, if they did exist, were
no longer effective in stimulating membership in the Order?
From correspondence and interviews with ex-Klansmen in many
parts of the state, the writer is convinced that most of their
mental stereotypes remained unaltered. Catholics were still con-
sidered, if not as actual, certainly as potential traitors to their
country, the Pope as a scheming tyrant thirsty for temporal power
if not the actual anti-Christ prophesied in the book of Revelation
and the superior Nordics as the chosen of God to rule over all
other people in the United States who were racially distinguish-
able from them. The presuppositions of Klan doctrine— Catholic
treachery, white supremacy, Protestant orthodoxy— were not
questioned or questionable. One Klansman who sorrowfully with-
drew from the Order having been convinced that its leaders were
subverting "its glorious tenets" significantly stated: "There was
nothing wrong with the Klan principles. But the members—
they weren't big enough for the Order."^ Another in like cir-
cumstances apologized for leaving the Order when Protestantism
was declining "while its enemy lies waiting to thrust the knife
into its very vitals" and when "the hordes of foreigners who
have swept across our shores . . . tear down that which we have
built up and prized, break without fear or favor our laws, destroy
our Constitution, desecrate our Sabbath, control our politics and

♦This anti-foreign hysteria found a positive form of ciqpression which was alrnost as
intense but far less dangerous. A riot of biographies °. American heroes-statesmen
cowboys and pioneers— were written. Motion pictures like The Covered wagon, ihe
Iron Horse," and "When Old New York was Young were hlmed and pa r o^,c
capitalists reconstructed the Wayside Inn of Longfellow and rebuilt the town of Williams-
burg as monuments to "American" culture.

164 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

seek to usurp our power." "I believed the Invisible Empire to be
bigger and greater than any Klansman within its ranks . . .
but when those who have been entrusted with authority and who
thereby should be over-zealous in their efforts to see that these
sacred principles were upheld, trample them under feet for their
own selfish ends and for the reason of self-aggrandizement, the
time has come when those who have declared that honor is greater
than life itself should decide which step to take for Right or for
Wrong, for Honor or for Dishonor, for the principles of Klan-
craft or for the autocratic methods of those who would force
down the throats of clean, honest, Protestant, Americans a prac-
tice of ignorance that views (sic) with the Romanist methods for
immensity."^

These statements are typical and bear witness to the fact that
it was not a rejection of the nativist principles of the Order
which caused the withdrawal of genuine Klansmen, but the fail-
ure of the Klan leaders to live up to them and to be guided by
them in the formation of their policies.

In regard to the second factor listed above, namely, the lure
of the Klan for the thrill-seekers, the situation had changed con-
siderably. The mysteries of the Order had become commonplace
and, as initiations ceased, the vicarious pleasure of imparting
mysteries likewise disappeared. Secret direct action against
Klan-indicted culprits had brought such a storm of popular dis-
approval that the Order in Pennsylvania had abandoned much
of its violence for the safer activities of political intrigue and
became little more than a political faction or bloc like the Catholic
bloc or the foreign bloc which it condemned. This, of course,
lessened the possibility of thrills for, while political manipulation
is doubtless interesting enough for the manipulator, it is usually
quite dull for the healer and the ordinary rank and file.

Some attempt was made to appeal to the curiosity and love of
mystery by introducing a second degree called Knights Kamelia
and, later, the degree of Kwand. Locally some sport was
found in conducting initiates through the rites of the order of
Imps (an acrostic for I Maintain Protestant Supremacy) and
the Yellow Dog degree. These elicited a little excitement and
some raucous guffaws but were as impotent to maintain an abiding
interest as was the initial kloranic ritual,

Dissatisfaction in the Eastern Province 165

The post-war economic depression had likewise lifted by 1925.
The immigration law of 1924 had virtually removed the newly-
arrived immigrant as a factor in the labor market. This fact
together with the disappearance of panic conditions, while not
removing the danger of the aUen's influence upon the survival
of nativist culture, did remove from the mind of the average
nativist the lively consciousness of the alien's presence which the
latter's economic competition had created during the panic years.

More important than these changes, however, was the fact that
the passing of the years had checked the efflorescence of na-
tionalism, at least in its negative aspects. The "Big Red Scare,"
hke a pricked balloon, had collapsed when quieter nerves gave a
hearing to the evidences of its exaggeration. "Big Bill" Thomp-
son and Mayor Hylan, who had earlier capitalized the anti-British
sentiment which Irish and German antipathy and the controversy
over war debt payment had helped to nourish, soon became the
object of jest among many of the people who had voted for
them; and William Jennings Bryan, in spite of his apparent
martyrdom, was worshipped by a rapidly diminishing group of
rehgious bitter-enders whose opposition to evolution had been
fostered not only by a vestigial fundamentalism but also by a
hatred of "foreign" ideas. Whether or not economic conditions
were causally related to the change in national psychology, never-
theless the full years of 1926-1929 witnessed a steady decline in
the nativists' fear that our American institutions were being en-
dangered, just as the lean years of the panic had been coincident
with an increased feeling of cultural insecurity.

Thus, in spite of the fact that the basic mental conceptions of
the true nativists were not altered after 1925, the situation had
changed sufficiently to de-emotionalize these conceptions and sever
them from the source of power which had translated them from
ideas into action. As important as this fact is, it is, however,
less important as a cause for the Klan's decline in Pennsylvania
than the internal dissentation which developed in the Order.
Revolt from within, not criticism from without, broke the Klan.
The shafts against Klan principles which were so constantly
launched by its foes had glanced harmlessly off the impregnable
armor of Klan conviction. Only as outside critics were able to
cause doubt in the minds of Klansmen regarding the sincerity.

166 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

honesty and ability of Klan leaders, were they at all effective.
Klansmen themselves laid their Order at the feet of their exultant
opponents.

To understand this internal dissention, one must keep in mind
that applications for membership had been carelessly accepted in
the heyday of recruiting. Whether moved by the ambition for
political power, a crass cupidity or a baser combination of the
two, Klan leaders of the type of D. C. Stephenson, Sam D. Rich
and James A. Comer saw the rapid attainment of their goals
only by furious recruiting and encouraged this practice in spite
of their undoubted knowledge of its danger to the permanence of
the Order. Indeed, the fact that the higher officials of the Order
put so little of its income into anything that would show their
expectation of a permanent organization, lends support to the
belief that they anticipated the temporary character of the Klan.*

In any event, the heterogeneous group which was admitted to
"citizenship" was destined to divide into factions even after the
mere curiosity-seekers had dropped out. Some Klansmen were
lax in their ethical standards and irritated many others who
joined the Order, thinking it to be a crusade for Puritan moral-
ity. Again, some were conservative and opposed the use of
strong-arm methods and activities that might provoke violence.
Practically every Klavern had its quota of "young bloods" who
wished to secure fire-eating "ex-priests" to lecture at open meet-
ings, to burn crosses on -the front lawn of some Catholic priest
to tack up warnings and send letters ominously signed with red
K K K's or parade masked and heavily armed through Catholic
communities where violent opposition had been aroused. Even
if a Klan was fortunate enough not to have many believers in
such direct action, it was seldom free from men who were pro-
fessional gossip mongers, men who used the Klavern floor to air
their private hates.**

, There were some Klans where strong political loyalties divided
the Klansmen into opposing groups. Conscientious Democrats

*See ante, p. 80.

**So prevalent was this that the national officials took occasion to warn the local
Cyclops to be firm against every Klansman who tried it. See for example the Minutes
of the State Klorero, Dec. 6, 1924, p. 14: "You should not allow men to spread dis-
sention on the floor of the Klavern... If a man comes into your Klavern and starts a tirade
about something that somebody is doing in the organization or something of that kind,
he should be stopped then and there. No one has a right to come into your organiza-
tion and tell you about their grief... If a man gets up on the floor of the klavern and
talks about some other klansman who was out with some other man's wife, the klavern
is not the place to take it up..." (Klansman Curry)

Dissatisfaction in the Eastern Province 167

were irritated to see a Republican boss get control of the organ-
ization and manipulate it to serve Republican interests in the gen-
eral elections. The reverse situation, though less frequent, was,
if anything, more irritating than that just mentioned because there
were more Republicans than Democrats in the State who gave
religious devotion to their party. This political factionalism was
especially bad when competing Klan candidates were in the field
and talked against each other in the Klavern meetings.

Some Klan leaders saw this factionalism growing and the wiser
ones tried to check it. When appeal and persuasion proved in-
effective means toward this end, it was always possible to use
disciplinary suspension. In hopeless cases, or when the officials
became jittery, they could always fall back on the surgery of
banishment. This latter device was used with increasing fre-
quency after 1925 and served to hasten rather than to save the
Order from collapse. By that time the Realm was divided into
strong factions and banishment was no longer interpreted as in-
dividual punishment but as action against the group to which the
banished member had belonged. The result in many instances
was that local Klans disregarded the banishment decrees and re-
fused to enforce them.

This defiance of the higher officials in regard to banishment
lead to a controversy over the constitutionality of the procedure
followed. Article XX of the Klan Constitution outlined a method
whereby banishment could regularly be issued only for major
offenses* and then only after a certain routine had been fol-
lowed. A written charge specifying the offense had to be filed
and a grand jury investigation by a Klokann committee con-
ducted." Then a trial had to be held before a Tribunal of sixteen
Klansmen of whom twelve must concur in awarding the penalty
and, if desired, the right of appeal to the Grand Tribunal or
Imperial Kloncilium had to be given. Only after conviction by
this procedure, could notice of banishment be issued by the Grand
Dragon and the doors of every Klavern in the Realm be shut
against the one so convicted.

In actual practice, however, banishment decrees were issued
both by the Imperial Wizard and by the Grand Dragon without
any of this procedure having been followed, without even a warn-

*See Ante, p. 75.

168 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

ing having been given to the individual or group banished. The
obvious reason for this was the fact that these officials knew that
the men they wished to remove would not be convicted by mem-
bers of their own local organization.

While it is easy to understand the circumstances which led
state and national officials to act over the heads of the local
Klans, it is just as easy to understand the hostile reaction of the
latter to such action. Angered by what they felt to be the most
obvious illegality and injustice, local Kligrapps wrote biting let-
ters to the Imperial and Realm offices citing Article XX of the
Klan Constitution referred to above. The Realm officials, re-
fusing to back down, referred in reply to the military character
of the Order and the oath which all Klansmen took to obey their
superiors. In addition, there were a few cases where the Realm
office went to the extent of completely eliminating an antagonistic
local Klan, revoking its charter and banishing all its members as
a group. This fate was suffered, for instance, by the William
Penn Klan in Pittsburgh and by the Warren G. Harding Klan
of Philadelphia.

The Klan Constitution, however, was really somewhat am-
biguous in regard to this matter. In spite of its provision that
all charges for which banishment was a possible penalty had to
be in writing and had to be investigated and substantiated by
regular trial procedure, there was also the provision which vested
the Imperial Wizard "with authority ... at his discretion to
issue banishment order" against a Klansman for any offense other
than those Hsted by the Constitution "that is inimical to the best
interest of this Order."' It is not specifically stated in connec-
tion with this power of banishment given the Wizard that guilt
must first be proved by the regularly constituted tribunals of the
Order. The Wizard chose to interpret his power broadly and
to act "at his discretion" as judge as well as executioner of de-
crees. There was no similar authority given to the Grand Dragon
by the Constitution but, since the Imperial Wizard preferred to
support his Realm representative in Pennsylvania when the latter
arbitrarily banished Klansmen, there remained no source of
redress.

The controversy over banishments was but one small phase of
a larger struggle which developed between the local Klans, or

Dissatisfaction in the Eastern Province 169

factions within them, and their state and national leaders. The
antagonism was originally focused primarily upon two individuals
but as time went on, it spread to include not only their followers
within the state but the national officials whose support they
enjoyed. Although somewhat similar factors were involved in
both instances, the dramatic quality of the controversy can best
be re-created by describing them separately.

The first centered in Philadelphia County. It was the most
populous area in the state and had a number of Klaverns. There
was William Penn Klavern at 52nd Street and Girard Avenue,
"the Mother Klan of Philadelphia." There was Old Glory No. 5
where Frank A. Whitesell and Bervin A. Taylor served as Ex-
alted Cyclops. It met in the fortieth ward. Liberty Bell Klan
met in the P. O. S. of A. Hall at 29th and Dauphin Streets and
used it as a depot for weapons when the controversy took on a
violent phase. There was also the Warren G. Harding Klan
where Walter Turner served as Exalted Cyclops. This Klan
had the distinction of having its total membership (some 550)
banished as a unit. Another of the Klans which met at 27th
Street and Columbia Avenue was named for Paul M. Winter,
who was Hiram Evans' field representative in the Philadelphia
district.

The person thus honored, Paul Meres Winter, gradually be-
came the object of outspoken criticism by many of the Klans-
men under his jurisdiction who finally joined together in an
organized attempt to have him removed from office. He was
not a native Philadelphian but was sent there from the Read-
ing district. Although a small man physically, his assertiveness
and vitality compensated somewhat for his unimpressive stature.
Evidently he had had little business success before he joined the
Order to recommend him for the administrative position which
he v^as given. He was loose in his personal finances and, in
spite of the large income which he received from his commission
on the approximately 30,000 members who paid their "donations"
within his jurisdiction, in 1926 he was without credit. His own
father had refused to do anything more for him financially and
he was obliged to appeal to his personal friends for money in
order to meet the payments due on his house." During the flush
years, however, especially during 1923 and 1924, when the Klan

170 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

was still regarded as a great crusade and its leaders suffered no
embarrassment from demands that regular accounting be made
of the funds of the Order, Winter enjoyed considerable popvi-
larity. In addition to his regular revenues, he received substan-
tial gifts from his Klansmen in appreciation for his services to
the Order. On one occasion they raised sufficient funds to pur-
chase a Packard automobile for him. When the business of
recruiting declined and it became necessary to replace the dem-
onstrations and shouting with the quieter tasks of operating the
Klans already overloaded with members. Winter's leadership was
less successful. The appointment of Charles Lawrence as County
Treasurer in charge of all funds* was particularly unwise and
led to much suspicion. Lawrence was judged to be untrust-
worthy and immoral. Many Klansmen were led to the conclu-
sion that Winter himself wasn't "straight." As one of these
Klansmen said : "You can't explain the Lawrence affair unless
Winter was as crooked as Lawrence or unless Lawrence had
something on Winter."'

As opposition to him grew, Winter began to fight back choos-
ing to use against the disaffected Klansmen the same type of
coercion that had previously given the Order such an unsavory
name when used against non-Klansmen. Winter's methods can
be illustrated by citing several specific examples. William O.
Cantey was one of the men chosen for punishment. Having
transferred from Erie, he had been in Philadelphia only a short
time when he felt that the Klan leadership there was bad and
had so expressed himself. He had a small auto repair and
garage business in which he had invested some $17,000. Winter
threatened him with the loss of his business if he persisted in
his criticism. When Winter's antagonism to him increased be-
cause of the near feud which developed with the women's Klan
over which Cantey 's wife presided as Kleagle, Winter's deter-
mined to act. One of the first things that was done was to
notify the public that Cantey was a Klansman. Winter knew that
this would result in a partial boycott of his garage by people
opposed to the Klan. To effect this purpose the letters K K K
were prominently painted over his garage. Agents were assigned
to picket his shop to warn those who patronized it and to see if

*See Ante, p. 158.

Dissatisfaction in the Eastern Province

171

he talked with any other Klansmen. All the latter were
threatened with banishment if they violated the order ostracizing
him.

Dayton Laubach suffered from somewhat similar tactics. He
was the owner and proprietor of a jewelry store on Woodland
Avenue where he served his neighborhood as confidant and ad-
viser as well as watch repairman and optician. Loyal to his
friends, he had built up the confidence and respect of quite a
group of people in the fortieth ward district. However mixed
his motives for joining the Klan— for he profited from a jewelry
business of considerable size with the Order— he was, like many
others, disturbed about the corrupt practices of Winter and his
agents. Unlike many others, he had the courage to speak his
mind and Winter struck back. A whispering campaign was be-
gun to inform Catholics and other anti-Klan groups of Laubach's
affiliation with the Order. While this produced a noticeable re-
duction in his business, Winter did not stop here.* Laubach was
especially dangerous because of his popularity and ability to
lead the men of his own district. In order to destroy the regard
in which other Klansmen held him, Winter repeatedly declared
to gatherings of Klansmen that he had proof that Laubach was
implicated in the theft of two government automobiles.® Winter
even went to the extent of having his agents threaten Laubach
with his life if he did not leave town, giving him forty-eight
hours to get out. Unlike Cantey, who was not so well known
and had fewer friends to help him, Laubach was able to defend
himself against Winter's threats. Indeed, he gathered so much
evidence against Winter and so many affidavits in proof of his
own innocence that Winter was forced to sign a written apology
and promise publicly to confess his error.

Laubach was fortunate in having the resources to fight Winter.
Other Klansmen had neither the time nor the money to do this
and dropped out of the Order or were banished for petty offenses
by hand picked Tribunals." To deal with his more obstinate
critics. Winter had organized, with the knowledge of and ap-
parently with the approval of the Imperial office, a Super-Secret
Society which soon became known as "the black-robed gang."
Captained by a young dare-devil, William G. Seemiller, it en-

172 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

gaged, under Winter's orders, in a campaign planned to terrorize
his critics into silence and inactivity.

In organizing this Triple-S Society, Winter had available as
a model a group which certain leaders in the State of Ohio had
created within the Klan and had found very useful when dan-
gerous undertakings were decided upon. This Ohio group was
known as the Night Riders and, acording to the testimony of one
of its leaders, had quite a career of violence." The membership
of Winter's Triple-S Society was, like that of the Night Riders,
unknown to the other Klansmen. Distinguishable by their black
robes and hoods upon which was an insignia which combined
the regular Klan pattern with a skull and cross-bones, they never
raised their visors.

On several occasions Winter himself had introduced this group
to the various Klaverns, prefacing their entrance with a speech
in which he "advised the Klansmen present that, if anyone should
receive a phone call at any time, they should obey anything they
(the Super Secret group) told them and ask no questions. "^'^
Among the activities of this Society which were reported were :
an assault made by some of its members upon the Kludd of
Liberty Bell Klavem in one of the Klavern meetings ; the destruc-
tion of a private garage of another Klansman ; the kidnapping
and threatened tarring and feathering of Klansman Klingerman.
It was reported that the group had formed plans to tar and
feather six other Klansmen. A deputation went to the Imperial
Wizard at Washington to report and protest against these ac-
tivities. But when, in October of 1926, it became evident that
no relief could be obtained from national headquarters, a group
of Klansmen who were being persecuted decided to organize in
order to protect themselves and, if possible, to secure Winter's
removal. Organized as "the I.K.K.D. of F.", one of the first
steps taken by this group was to prepare a letter and mail it to
one thousand leading Klansmen in an effort to create a general
reform movement within the Klan. Appealing to the law-abiding
element, they wrote :

"... You and we alike gave our allegiance to the In-
visible Empire believing that those who have been honored
with office had first these great principles at heart. That
they believed in the oath and obligation which we assumed

Dissatisfaction in the Eastern Province 173

at the Sacred Altar and that they as well as we would
sacrifice all to see that these and our great pnnciples were
upheld. Then we sat blinded to the fact that our field
Representative was building up a far more autocratic
organization than Rome ever dared to build, treading upon
and destroying these sacred oaths and obligations just as
he saw fit to serve his own selfish ends. This seems hke a
broad statement but God has blessed you with the power
of thought and let us stop and see the things that have been
going on around us, and what we have been blmded to."

Then followed charges against the Super Secret Society and
especially against Winter himself. He had, either personally or
through his agency, the Triple-S Society, according to the K.
D. of F., (1) broken his Klan Oath and the Imperial Instruc-
tions No. 1, (2) revealed the identity of Klansmen to the alien
world, (3) ruined the business of Klansmen, (4) lied unmerci-
fully, (5) given no adequate accounting of Klan funds, (6) taken
foreign-born into the Order, (7) driven men from the organiza-
tion by trumped up charges and instructed juries, (8) ordered
Klansmen to stay away from Klaverns not their own, (9) lied
about Sam Rich and the State funds, and (10) prevented the
chartering of the Klans. The letter closed with a challenge :

"The K. D. of F. dares Paul M. Winter to stand trial
for banishment and treason with a jury composed of clergy-
men (ordained) who are also Klansmen. We demand this
kind of a jury because we know that other juries have been
packed and instructed and we trust that those who have
taken up the mantle of Christ's ministry cannot be bribed
or coerced but will render a just verdict. Will he accept
this challenge? Ask Himf If he is innocent of these
charges, he has nothing to fear and certainly he would be
vindicated. The time has come when these wrongs shall
be redressed and right shall rule the earth and when no one
who, for the lure of gold or the temptings of envy or per-
sonal ambitions, shall drag through the mire the Sacred
cause we have espoused ..."

Branding the writers of this letter as cowards "determined to
break the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan in Philadelphia County,"
Winter replied to this letter saying that he would "face the
writer or writers of this communication at any time or place
requested . . . and answer your lies."

174

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

The K. D. of F. promptly responded with a long communica-
tion again condemning Winter's "treasonable acts" and claiming
that he had "done more to break the Organization than anyone
that we know of, including Rome itself." Quite evidently the
trial and banishment of Klansmen was a special grievance. "You
call your treasonable acts mistakes and try to blind the county
to your activities, while you place on trial good honest Klansmen
who were better Klansmen than you'll ever be." Demanding
that Winter "make amends immediately," the letter concluded
by threatening that "if this is not done, you will witness one of
the most sad, sorrowful and eventful years in the history of the
Klan for its officials in the state of Pennsylvania and probably
in the United States."

When the excitement over the activities of the Triple-S
Society was developing, its captain, William G. Seemiller, was
himself brought to trial. He tried to excuse, if not to justify,
his actions on the ground that his superior had ordered them.
Winter, however, claimed that his orders had been exceeded
although it is evident that there were many Klansmen who dis-
believed his claim. Seemiller subsequently turned extremely
hostile to Winter, not alone because Winter failed to support
him at his trial but also because he blamed Winter for causing
an estrangement between Mrs. Seemiller and himself which re-
sulted in their separation.

Indeed, the charges that finally brought Winter to trial were
made by this same ex-captain of the Super-Secret Society whom
Winter formerly trusted to rid him of his critics. Although the
Klokann found the charges made against Winter true, the
Tribunal before which the case was presented was unable to
muster the necessary votes — twelve out of sixteen — to get a
conviction. This is in part explained by the fact that the in-
fluence of Charles Lewis, Imperial Representative for Eastern
Pennsylvania, and that of the Imperial office as well was exerted
in behalf of Winter.

In retaliation for this eflfort to oust him. Winter not only
immediately banished the Klansmen who took leading parts in
his prosecution but also unconditionally disbanded the local Klan
in which the trial was held. While Winter escaped conviction
in this trial, the total effect of the controversy upon the Order

Dissatisfaction in the Eastern Province 175

itself was disastrous, for it lost heavily both in prestige and in
membership.

The disbanded Warren G. Harding Klansmen met and organ-
ized under the name of "the American Debating Society." Another
group, calling themselves "The Twenty-Six Club" organized to
carry on the fight against Winter's "overlordship." These and
other groups, one of which took the name of "American Christian
Patriotic League," made up of people who had dropped out or
been driven out of the Order were referred to as "The Independent
Klan." Realm officials in other parts of the State who were aware
of what was transpiring in Philadelphia, tried to hush the matter
up and, when they did need to answer questions about it, at-
tempted to laugh it out of countenance.

Thus, in the Philadelphia District, the men's as well as the
women's Order suffered a secessionist movement in 1926 and
early in 1927 which left the parent organizations weak and bitter.
In both instances, the disaffected rank and file had found their
chief danger not in Catholic or alien threats to their liberties but
in the actions of their own leaders.*

* Pennsylvania Klansmen were not alone in this secessionist rnovement. The New
Haven Connecticut Klan for instance had taken s.m.lar action ''''"f r^ff'".^ ^/nHian
and had published the following manifesto addressed to the Imperial Klaliff at Indian-

^^°'"'"No American worthy of the name can longer affiliate with an organization such
as the Knights of the Ku KIux Klan of Georgia, Inc now is and maintain his self-
respect Tiday under the leadership of Mr. Hiram Wesley Evans and yourself, the
Klan has degenerated into nothing less than an organization of greed

It has become a travesty on patriotism and a blasphemous caricature professing
Protestantism. It is not only anti-Catholic and anti-Jew, but absolutely anti-Ameri-
can and anti-Protestant. . ^, . • „i„ .„

It has become without question the greatest menace facing the American people to-
day For every good man severing his connection with it, ten men are taken in that
would shame a ward leader in Tammany Hall. The thousands of good Protestant
Americans are blind to its intrigues and crooked methods. „ ^ , . ^, -

Real Americans must be awakened and made to use every effort to stamp out this
slimy serpent that threatens the very life of our Nation. Hundreds of real men in
this old city of New Haven are glad to declare themselves, and for that reason a copy
of this letter goes to the public press to use as their editors see fit

— The Independent, (N. Y.) Jan. 1926, p. 59.

References

1. The Washington Poit. Nov. 2, 1930, Section I, p. 14.

2. Testimony of Klansman Frank Stoner of Scottdale Klan No. 37.

3. Testimony of Klansman Harold R. Hoffman, in charge of the K-Duo Degree, Phila-
delphia. . .

4. Constitution and By-Laws of the Klan. Article XX, bection 6.

5. Ibid. Article XX, Section 34. „ , r , r.i_-i j i u-

6. Dayton Laubach Correspondence. Hartwell Stafford, editor of the Philadelphia
Masonic Magazine, was thus importuned and made a loan of $500, to Winter who
promptly defaulted on his payments.

7. Testimony of Klansman W. O. Cantey.

8. Affidavits of Klansmen James M. Henry and Robert S. Morrison. ,, ,> d
9 Affidavits o' the following men who heard Winter make this charge: Harold K.

Hoffman William O. M?ttner, R. C. Shran. Gustav Schreiber. Robert Morrison,
Everett Blakeman, James McHenry, James A. MacFarland, Jr., William Frederickson.

10. Correspondence of Richard R. Hoffman to Robert Moore, Jan. 27, 1926.

11. Testiony of J. R. Ramsey of Dayton, Ohio.

12. Affidavits of Albert P. Bailey and eight other Klansmen.

CHAPTER 12

The Decline of the Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania:
Revolt in Province II

". . . Man^ proud man,

Brest in a little brief authority.

Most ignorant of what he's most assured.

— Shakespeare

There was likewise much dissention in the western Province
of the Realm where Sam D. Rich, the Acting Grand Dragon of
the Realm, was the official upon whom most of the criticism was
focused. A multitude of minor incidents had created a deep dis-
satisfaction with his leadership. For one thing, he was much
too careless and repeatedly failed to keep his promises to his local
Klans and to his subordinate officials. He frequently promised
to speak at Klan gatherings and, after he had been advertised
as an attraction, failed to appear without giving the sponsoring
Klan any notice of his indisposition and without offering an
apology for what was, at least, a breach of common courtesy.

Rich's memory seemed especially poor with regard to his
financial obligations. As an example, he had encouraged Lincoln
Klan No. 21 at Mt. Pleasant to plan a large demonstration on a
neighboring mountain top. It was to be a gala affair and some
thousands of visiting Klansmen from Westmoreland, Allegheny,
Somerset and Fayette Counties were expected to attend. The
preparations were expensive and, while such demonstrations
usually showed a profit for the Klan which sponsored them, Rich
had promised to make up from Realm funds any deficit which
might occur. It happened that the weather on the night of the
demonstration was unusually inclement and the attendance conse-
quently was much smaller than was anticipated. The profits from
gate receipts and from sales on the grounds were correspondingly
meager so that there was a deficit of some hundreds of dollars.
In spite of Rich's promise to pay this and in spite of the per-

Revolt in Province II

177

sistence of the Kligrapp of Lincoln Klan, Rich never met the
obligation and it eventually had to be paid from local funds.
Wilkinsburg Klan had a similar experience in its failure to collect
a subsidy which Rich had promised for a demonstration in behalf
of the Junior Order of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan.

Characteristic of Rich's financial dealings was his treatment of
his subordinates. John B. Davis, for example, was persuaded
by Rich to leave an excellent position in order to accept a Klan
inspectorship at a slight increase in salary. After he had accepted
Rich's offer— albeit against the advice of Joseph Shoemaker who
was familiar with the financial practices of his chief — he was
obliged to accept successive reductions in pay until his salary was
considerably under his former income.^ A. L. Cotton complained
of often having great difficulty in collecting what was due him.
Lemuel Peebles testified to a shortage of $2,000 in the amount
which the State office had paid him.^

Those whose contacts with Rich were most numerous felt that
his untrustworthiness went farther than persistent attempts to
avoid his financial obligations and a failure to meet his appoint-
ments. They became convinced that he was generally unreliable.
They found him guilty of a deliberate effort to sow discord among
his staff members. His treatment of A. L. Cotton and Joseph
Shoemaker is a case in point. Perhaps he feared the growing
power of these two men who had been successful organizers and
had grown into close personal friends. He disliked the fact that
Klansmen, coming into the Realm office, usually preferred to talk
with these subordinates rather than with him. As Cotton himself
related his experience: "Rich's policy was to poison each of his
Kleagles against the others. He certainly told me a lot of lies
about Joe and Joe a lot about me . . . When Peebles and I
were at the Harrisburg office together he tried the same thing.
'You keep this under your hat but I don't trust Peebles,' and so
on and on." Fred R. Dent, one of the prominent lecturers for
the Klan, had a similar estimate of Rich's unrehability : "You
couldn't pin him down. When there were differences of opinion
or when some one came into the office dissatisfied, he would
always say, 'Well, let's lay our cards on the table,' but he never
would lay his on. You were seldom sure of him."

178 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

It is significant commentary on Rich's character that he em-
ployed many service men to spy on the Kleagles, even those whom
he himself had chosen. A comment by one of these investigators
is typical of a general feeling that "Sam didn't trust anybody.
He didn't trust me. He was constantly sending out agents to
check on the officers and on each other."-''

The volume of this growing dissatisfaction made organized
opposition to Rich almost inevitable. The fact that it began in
Westmoreland County was largely fortuitous for in Allegheny
County the criticism of his administration was also outspoken.
Perhaps the initiative was taken by the Westmoreland Klans be-
cause they were among the few Klans in the state which had
organized into a County Unit whose officials were granted some
authority over the local officials. Moreover, the Exalted Cyclops
of the County Klan, Rev. John F. Strayer, then of Latrobe, had
been having a lengthy quarrel with Rich over the latter's failure
to authorize a trial for two members of the Greensburg local
No. 3 who had been suspended.

Leading up to this quarrel was the factionalism within the
local Klaverns when the Westmoreland County Klan was organ-
ized. This is quite evident from the following quotation made
from an early letter which Exalted Cyclops Strayer sent to the
Klans within the county.

. . If we can maintain the spirit of unity, and Christian
forbearance among ourselves, no evil power can ever break
us . . . But if on the other hand strife, divisions, jealousy,
brother going to law with brother, schism, enter the Klan we
are doomed and doomed speedily. O! my brothers, I hear
there are divisions among you and I partly believe it. This
letter is an appeal for unity in Westmoreland Co. . . .

"We are asking that each local Klan in the County who
has not already done so shall at once appoint four members,
(these may be officers or not as the Klan may determine)
who shall meet with the representatives of the other Klans,
on the second Sunday afternoon of each month in the I. O.
O. F. hall in the Kounty Seat, and work and plan for the
best interests of Klandom in Westmoreland Kounty. Please
do not fail us. The Kounty Klan ... is the greatest unify-
ing force of which I am aware. There are great political
issues at stake and we can more capably meet and win these
through a centralized unit ..."

Revolt in Province II

179

The Greensburg local suffered particularly from this malady.
Indeed, Rich had early sought to remedy the condition by grant-
ing permission to the leader of one faction, Squire James B.
Smail, to organize a second Klan in the town "because of the
strife and friction now going on in the present Klan."* Affairs
improved for a time and Smail did not leave his Klavem. In
May, 1925, after the quarrel had begun anew, Squire Smail and
an associate, Sam Lopus, were suspended but no charges pre-
ferred against them. Strayer, as Exalted Cyclops of the County
unit, thought that specific charges should have been made and an
opportunity given for the suspended men to defend themselves.
He wrote Rich to that effect. A communication under date of
July 15 reveals his growing bitterness.

"... Sam, I have tried to be a good Klansman; I have
answered when you have called. I have given the best that
I had to the Klan; I have tried to be loyal and to serve.
I know that something is wrong in Greensburg, and if we
are to succeed the clear white light must shine. I know
not who your secret agents are, — I do not want to know.
But for one who loves his native land and our great fra-
ternity, yea, more than life, I ask that immediate attention
be given to this matter. If these my fellow Klansmen are
guilty of crime, we should know it that we may shun them.
If they are what they have always appeared to be, good,
honest, fearless, loyal Klansmen they should be vindicated
and their accusers thrown into the Lion's den ..."

Rich refused to act and the matter was referred to the national
office at Washington, D. C. It was not until January 12, 1926,
however, that H. W. Evans wrote to say that he had issued orders
"that the matter receive attention."

This apparent injustice to "loyal Klansmen" and deafness to
the appeals of the Westmoreland County leaders only served to
increase their belief in the corruption of tlieir Realm chief and
to encourage them to gather sufficient evidence thereof to force
his removal. Finally, incensed by a very brief statement of the
Realm finances which Rich had issued and which his critics con-
sidered inadequate and misleading, the Westmoreland County
Klan sent a delegation of seven, headed by Rev. J. F. Strayer,
to interview the Imperial Wizard and make a personal protest
against the Rich administration. They returned with Evans'

180 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

promise to give them an immediate and complete report of the
finances of the Realm, to remove Rich from office by the end of
the year and to give the next State Klorero the privilege of
approving the new Grand Dragon.

This meeting of Evans and the Westmoreland delegation took
place on December 20, 1925. When, on January 10, 1926, none
of Evans' promises had been fulfilled, Westmoreland County pre-
ferred formal written charges against Rich to the National Klon-
cilium of the Order. In the Bill of Particulars which followed
were specified such items as (1) appointment of commissions to
take charge of McKeesport Klan No. 7 and Central Klan No. 32
for which the commissioners were never paid; (2) illegal lifting
of the charters of Junction City Klan and Central No. 32;
(3) refusal to carry out his agreement with Mrs. Knight to pay
her for not working under Mrs. Goodwin ; (4) employment of
A. T. Carlberg and I. F. Heidler without securing the sanction
of the Realm Finance Committee ; ( 5 ) illegally suspending Klans-
men Halloway, Reedy, Moore, Dale, Berthold, Wilson and Vial
from Keystone State Klan No. 154 as well as of Klansmen Smail
and Lopus of Greensburg Klan No. 3 and refusing to give them
a trial; (6) directing the kidnapping of a child from his mother;
and (7) ordering the brutal treatment of a colored man at the
instigation of a white prostitute.^

These instances of "dishonesty, misrepresentation, and malad-
ministration" are self-explanatory. In addition, however, the bill
of particulars included reference to two commercial ventures of
Rich which demand some explanation to be understood. The
first of these was the Flowers Product Company. Rich and
some of his associates were impressed by the quantities of food,
especially of candy, which Klansmen purchased at the various
demonstrations and conceived of making a nice profit out of a
special Klan brand of candy. It was highly probable these men
thought, that the loyalty which Klansmen had for their Order
might be developed to include a certain bar of candy, the wrapper
of which could be appropriately stamped with Klan symbols.
Thus a practically guaranteed market would be secured for this
product.

It was with this idea that the Flowers Product Company was
organized. It turned out to be a fiasco and Klansmen felt that

Revolt in Province II

181

Mr. Rich was largely to blame as is shown by the following
item quoted from the bill of complaint :

"Mr. Sam D. Rich used Mr. Wallace to sell stock in the
Flowers Product Company to Mr. (John G.) Miles with the
promise of purchasing all of the one kind of candy the Com-
pany could make, and upon this representation Mr. James
and Mr. Miles furnished the Company Five Thousand Dol-
lars, but Mr. Rich never purchased any candy from the Com-
pany. Later Mr. Rich agreed to take three hundred dollars
of the stock, but never paid one cent for the stock, thereby
embarrassing these men and perhaps causing a total loss to
these associates of Mr. Rich.'

Events were to prove that the loss, as anticipated, was "total."

The other commercial enterprise was the Daily Dispatch Pub-
lishing Company. At the time of the Carnegie and Scottdale
riots in the autumn of 1923,* Klansmen found considerable dif-
ference between the newspaper accounts of those affairs and the
accounts given by their Klan leaders. Suggestions came to the
Realm office that there was need for a newspaper which would
represent the Klan cause "truthfully." It was a time when the
emotions of Klansmen were deeply aroused and when the average
member, believing that his Order was suffering Jesuitical per-
secution, was willing to sacrifice much for the Cause. Whether
or not the State officers had the welfare of the Order as much
in mind as the Klansmen who bought stock in this enterprise can
at this time only be surmised, but they acted promptly. Before
the end of the year they had incorporated the "Daily Dispatch
Publishing Co.," under a charter (Delaware) allowing the issu-
ance of the following capital stock: 300,000 shares of class A
common non-voting stock at $5 par value and 1,000 shares
(voting) with no par value. The non-voting stock was immedi-
ately hawked among the Klansmen and it is estimated that at
least $90,000 worth of it was sold.'' The thousand shares which
carried the control of the enterprise were naturally not put on
the market but kept by the incorporators. Agents were likewise
sent out to sell subscriptions to the paper at the rate of $11.00
for a year's issues or $20.60 for two years' issues. The enter-
prise was abandoned after a few months, much to the embarrass-

*See ante, p. 52 S.

182

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

ment of the purchasers of its stock who wrote nasty letters to
the president of the corporation, George P. Grise, and to the
Reahn office. When the State Klorero met in December, 1924,
the affair had by no means been forgotten and Rich was obliged
to refer the matter to a committee which he conveniently filled
with men who would not embarrass him. Klansman Heidler who
made the committee's report frankly informed the assembled
delegates that no relief could be obtained from the Realm and
stated the opinion of the committee to be that "the letters which
had been sent out demanding payment of the men for stock pur-
chased . . . should be ignored." ^ Rev. W. J. Dempster who
could always be trusted to fly to Rich's defense when the occasion
demanded and to pay him compliments even when there was no
occasion, jumped to his feet "to say a few words."

"... Up to the present time, nothing has turned out
as we expected. But I know that you are all Klansmen and
that it is hard for you to hold malice in your heart for a
single instant. Nobody is to blame. We have made no
mistake, for I never think that I have made a mistake when
things do not turn out the way I expected them to when I
went into the thing with the highest of motives. I believe in
it (the Daily Dispatch) now and will pay my money just
as soon as the contract which we entered into has been ful-
filled and the paper on the streets. Let us stand together
and when we do, we are going to win." (Applause)^

The exploited Klansmen had no legal recourse for the money
they had spent for stock but the money paid for subscriptions
did involve the legal necessity of providing a paper if the sub-
scription price was kept. This technicality was met ; the Daily
Dispatch appeared a few times on the streets and its promoters
considered the matter closed. Sam Rich, however, had given this
enterprise his blessing and had encouraged the purchase of stock.
The consequent moral obligation which he had assumed was less
easy to escape than the legal one.

Fortunately, a proposition made by James S. Vance offered a
possible way out. Vance edited a scurrilous anti-Catholic journal
called The Fellowship Forum the staff of which he claimed was
"one hundred per cent Klan and Mason." The subscription price
of this sheet was $2.00 a year and Vance offered Rich a fifty
per cent commission if he would get subscriptions in job lots.

Revolt in Province II 183

Calling a meeting of his E. C.'s in Pittsburgh, Rich consoled
them with the statement that "The Daily Dispatch fizzled because
of the human element, not because of crookedness. They (the
publishers) admit that a mistake=^ was made but say they are
going to make good." « Rich and Vance explained the proposi-
tion of the Fellowship Forum to the assembled Exalted Cyclops
and alloting each Klan its quota of subscriptions, urged the offi-
cers' to push its sale. "'Sell to Klansmen, to supended members,
to eligible members. Sell it to every Protestant organization m
your community."" One dollar of every subscription. Rich
promised, would be deposited in a special fund in the Diamond
National Bank under his name as trustee and used to repay bona
fide stockholders. In regard to the latter, there seemed to be
some uncertainty. In some strange way the Company's record of
stockholders had been destroyed and Rich explained that it would
be necessary for those holding the stock to make affidavit to that
fact and file this and their stock certificates in his office.

The plan worked fairly well. Stockholders subscribed to the
Fellowship Forum and urged others to do so while those who had
engineered the plan doubtless complimented themselves for dis-
covering a method to make non-assessable stock at least partially
assessable.

With these facts in mind we can now return to the item in
the Bill of Complaint against Rich made by the Westmoreland
County Klan:

"Mr. Sam D. Rich stated that not one cent of the money
earned by subscription on the Fellowship Forum would be
spent for anything except paying back the men who had
subscribed to the Daily Dispatch and purchased stock in said
Daily Dispatch, but Mr. Rich has used this money for other
purposes, namely for the 'Lilly Fund,' and it is averred that
about Eight Thousand Dollars were collected and about Four
Thousand Dollars misappropriated."

While the Westmoreland County leaders were busy gathering
evidence and preparing this long list of charges the Klans of
Allegheny County were also organizing for action. William Penn

•High Klan officials were never specific about this mistake. The impression given to
most of the rank and file was that those in charge spent too much for equipment and
Xe space and the funds were soon exhausted in payment of rentals and interest
charges. This explanation, however, is open to serious doubt.

184 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

Klavern of which Dr. Charles F. Oyer was Exalted Cyclops,
took the initiative. This Klavern had a special grievance against
Rich who, as King Kleagle, had personally admitted many men
to membership in the Order, collected their donations, and then
turned them over to William Penn to look after. Every member
thus entered upon the rolls of William Penn Klan meant that
Rich had pocketed five dollars that otherwise would have gone
to their own treasury.

Led by Oyer, an Allegheny County Klans Committee was
formed which sent resolutions to the Imperial Wizard demanding
that Rich be removed and that the chartered Klans be given an
opportunity to elect their own Grand Dragon. When their peti-
tions, like those of the Westmoreland County organization, were
treated with "silent contempt," a cooperating group of Klansmen
from Allegheny, Westmoreland and neighboring counties, calling
themselves the "Non Silba Club," prepared to make an issue of
the matter. Acting through a committee of ten, they set Feb-
ruary 12, 1926 as the dead line for Rich's removal and, in case
Evans continued to remain obstinate, February 27th was an-
nounced as the date for a Convention of the chartered Klans at
which to select a Grand Dragon and to take any other necessary
steps which the situation demanded.

By this time the Wizard was convinced that he must do some-
thing for this group seemed determined and was too influential
to be summarily banished from the Order. He promised to come
to Pittsburgh to meet with them on February 13th. In order to
again warn Evans that he would "lose Western Pennsylvania" if
he did not suspend Rich and allow him to be brought to trial,
Dr. Oyer and four other leaders boarded Evans' train east of
Pittsburgh, interrupted a poker game which he was having "with
his gang of gunmen that he always carried along with him"
and explained the situation. After considerable banging of fists
upon tables and protestation by Evans that Rich "was working
hard and doing all right" and that he "loved Rich," the visiting
committee won their point. At a well attended meeting that
night in Duffs College, Rich's resignation was read and the Realm
was temporarily placed under the control of the Imperial Depart-
ment of Realms of which H. K. Ramsey was the ranking ad-
ministrative officer.

Revolt in Province II

185

March 9, 1926, was set for Rich's trial. Since no form of
tribunal was specified in the Klan Constitution for the trial of a
Grand Dragon, Evans appointed three friends of Rich to act as
judges : J. C. Orbison, of IndianapoHs ; A. H. Bell, Grand Dragon
of New Jersey; and J. A. Edge, of Lexington, Kentucky. On
March 9, Rich was ill with appendicitis and the trial was postponed
until April 6. On that date Rich developed bronchial trouble
and the trial was again postponed, this time indefinitely. Mean-
while Evans tried hard to silence the demand for the trial. He
worked with Dr. Oyer, who, as chairman of the group of co-
operating Klansmen, was determined to bring Rich to justice.
As Oyer himself graphically described it :

"The Wizard began writing me nice letters, friendly letters
with lots of compliments. I had managed the Western Penn-
sylvania boys so well and all that bull. Zumbrunn, one of
Evans' lawyers, wrote that he would make me Grand Dragon
of the State if I would see that this matter about Rich was
hushed up. I could easily see through all this flattery and
finally told Evans I was not after the State office. Ah I
wanted was a decent administration and then our boys would
be satisfied. .

"Things dragged along without any action, finally i sent
a telegram to the Wizard: Sam Rich trml must be held or
we will take matter to the civil courts. That scared the
Wizard half to death for he immediately telegraphed back
setting the date for the trial and asked me to make arrange-
ments for rooms in the William Penn Hotel where it could
be held.

"Then, shortly after that I received a letter from Zum-
brunn asking me to come to Washington for a secret inter-
view and to let absolutely no one know where I was going.
I had come into my office here with a friend of mine and
found this letter from Zumbrunn. Since my friend saw it,
I let him read what it said. I knew he would keep his mouth
shut. He said, 'What are you going to do?' I told him,
'I'm going down.' I didn't let anyone else know but my wife.

"I didn't realize it at the time, but now I'm sure that
Evans tried to frame me on that trip. When I got on the
Pullman, the berth opposite me was occupied by a pretty
girl and she began flirting with me soon after I got on. I
didn't think anything about it then, went into the smoker
and found two friends of mine who were en route to Florida.
We sat and talked in the smoker for a long time and as
luck would have it, they had the compartment in front of

186 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

mine. When I got off in Washington the next morning,
this girl was right beside me but I was talking to my friends
and I think she lost her nerve and wouldn't go through with
her plan. I remember noticing several men standing around
who were doubtless federal agents employed to pick me up.
She would likely, if I had been alone, taken my arm and
later sworn that I had slept with her that night. That was
done by Evans lots of times when he wanted to discredit
someone or get rid of someone. After the arrest it would
be put up to you to either get out of the Klan or stand trial
and usually the person got out of the Klan.

"When I got to Zumbrunn's office he was there with
Attorney Brown and one of Evans' gunmen. The first thing
they did was to lock the ofhce and then Zumbrunn asked me
if anyone knew that I was there. I told him that my wife
and this other party knew I was there but that he could be
trusted not to talk. I know very well that if it had not been
for the fact that these people knew where I was, that I
wouldn't be here to tell the tale.

"Zumbrunn made more promises and again offered me the
Grand Dragonship if I would call off Rich's trial. I told
him, 'Absolutely not !' Then he told me that Evans wanted
to see me. I said, Td like to see the old bird too.' So I
went up stairs and the first question Evans asked me was,
'How is Sam?' He evidently had a great affection for Sam.
He knew that Sam had enough on him that he had to be
nice to him. ..."

The date which Evans chose for the trial of Rich was the day
of the primary election. May 18th. It was doubtless chosen in
order to make it as difficult as possible for the prosecution. Some
of the witnesses, notably Rev. J. F. Strayer, who had led the
opposition to Rich in Westmoreland County, could not be present
on that date. Klansman Van A. Barrickman acted as prosecuting
attorney. Such damaging evidence was presented that even a
tribunal of Rich's friends were obliged to recommend his banish-
ment. This recommendation was eventually accepted and on
July 22d, he was banished by Imperial decree.

Unfortunately, the removal of Rich did not end the trouble in
Western Pennsylvania. A temporary flurry of resentment was
created when it was reported that W. L. Robinson, whom Im-
perial Klazik Ramsey had delegated to take charge of Pennsyl-
vania, was discovered "defiling the state office by immoral relations
with his stenographer." " This resentment remained temporary

Revolt in Province II 187

because Robinson was immediately removed and his position given
to Spratt another man from the Atlanta office. The permanent
controversy which again brought strife into the Order developed
because of the selection and administration of Herbert C. Shaw

as Grand Dragon.

In December of 1925, Evans had promised the Westmoreland
County leaders that "he would nominate a man for Grand Dragon
and that this nomination must be ratified by a majority of all
delegates assembled" in the State Klorero and "in case they failed
to ratify he would continue to nominate until a man was
ratified."" The Wizard was under no constitutional necessity
to do this* but apparently he considered it advisable in order to
quiet the criticism then rampant in that section.** This promise
was not forgotten when the delegates assembled in DuBois for
the summer Klorero on August 28th. A large number of the
men came determined to elect Dr. Oyer, whose reputation had
been enhanced by his leadership in the reform movement against
Rich Evans did not come to the Klorero as he had pledged to
do but sent instead his Imperial Klazik, H. K. Ramsey. Ramsey
informed the delegates that he had been authorized by the Wizard
to nominate Rev. Herbert C. Shaw, a Methodist minister, orig-
inally from Tennessee but for some twelve years past "a member
in good standing in the Erie Annual Conference" in Pennsyl-
vania.^* Known for little within the Klan ranks except his
radical anti-Romanist views, he received in the first balloting but
sixty votes while Dr. Oyer polled one hundred and twenty-four.
Ramsey, however, ruled the balloting illegal on the ground that
Oyer had not been nominated and that no candidate was eligible
unless nominated by the Imperial Wizard. He further refused
to make any nomination except Shaw and threatened that "we
would take Shaw or there would be no Grand Dragon elected." "
Some of the delegates withdrew. Others, threatened with the
alternative of having Shaw or accepting some out-of-state official
like Robinson or Spratt or Colescott, thought it useless to keep
up the struggle. Calvin Butler*** was persuaded to throw the
votes of his large Altoona Klan to Shaw. When the second vote

•*The*Wizt?d°had by proclamation laid down this procedure at the Imperial Klon-
-i^Vi^D^.'Vy^e^^m'li^tl^TdThaVrmse^^td^ca^lefB^^^ h.m and offered him a

state job in return for his support of Shaw.

188 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

was taken, enough wires had been pulled to secure Shaw's
ratification.

The majority of the Klans in the western province, although
deciding to accept Shaw's leadership as better than that of Rich,
were never uncritical of him. He had been too faithful to Rich
to escape suspicion. Shaw, moreover, was entirely lacking in tact
and made no effort to conciliate his opponents or to win their
loyalty. By February 1927, resolutions were adopted by the
"Western Pennsylvania loyal Klansmen" and Evans was notified
of the shortcomings of this new Grand Dragon.

Shaw, unlike Rich, had no criminal charges placed against him.
The chief criticism of his administration was that of "dividing the
Realm into two warring camps" by such things as (1) showing
hostility to the Klansmen who had "saved the state from chaos and
disgrace when the former acting Grand Dragon brought our noble
organization into turmoil within and disrepute without" while
showing favoritism to those who had supported the Rich regime ;

(2) removing the Realm office from Pittsburgh to Harrisburg
when the majority of chartered Klans were in Province II ;

(3) refusing to show a fraternal spirit or to "answer simple
questions" relative to such things as the salaries which Great
Titans were paid; (4) "forgetting" to circularize the state against
the wet William S. Vare when he ran for U. S. Senator ;
(5) making "unscholarly and undignified utterances" generally
and especially for delivering "ranting and inflammatory speeches
against Catholics and Negroes." ^°

Forgetting the temper of these Western Pennsylvania Klans-
men, the Wizard repUed to their communications by mailing to
them the banishment decrees of two of their trusted leaders.
Van A. Barrickman and John F. Strayer. Given "without notice,
trial or hearings" these banishments were immediately labeled
"high-handed tyranny" and openly renounced. Several of the
Klans passed resolutions "that we will not recognize or respect
these banishments by our Imperial Wizard, Hiram W. Evans," ^"^
and so informed him.

Barrickman wrote personally to the Wizard to ^® ask him why
he "so arrogantly ascribe(d)" to himself "such arbitrary power"

Revolt in Province II

189

in face of the constitutional provision that "all charges . . .
shall be in writing, specifying the acts complained of."* Informing
Evans that he (Barrickman) "was as good a Klansman as you
ever dare be," he demanded to know the charges against him and
to have a chance to defend himself. When Evans gave no sign
of granting this request, Barrickman and Oyer decided to hold
the trial in their own klavern and gave notice to the State and
National offices that if there were charges or witnesses, they
might present them. The trial was held according to schedule and
as the presiding officer described it:

"... Shaw came in with a gang of gunmen.** I took
the chair and proceeded with the trial. Shaw got up and
asked for a word and said that he deposed me from office.

" Try and put me out of it !' I replied.

"He tried to tell the boys that the trial was illegal. He is
a pretty fair talker, too, but the boys were hostile. Finally
he got mad and said, 'By the authority vested in me I revoke
the charter of William Penn Klan.'

" 'You can say you revoke it all you care to but try and
get it.' Nor did he, in spite of the gang he had with him.
He tried to get the members of William Penn to leave the
trial. 'AH those who wish to remain with the Klan and be
reinstated will please rise.'

"Nobody got up. He talked some more and asked the
same question again. Nobody stood. After some more
harangue he asked a third time. Still no response. The
fellows were in to fight this thing through.

"I finally went back to the door and told Shaw and his
gunmen that if any of them were witnesses against Barrick-
man, they could remain. All the others could get out and
get out quick for the trial would proceed: 'Hurry up, you
bunch of hoodlums, get on out . . .'

"We went through with the trial and nobody was there to
substantiate the charges on the banishment papers so the jury
acquitted the defendant. All this went down on our minutes.
We acted constitutionally. Shaw tried to force his will against
the By-Laws of the Order."

*See ante, p. 75.

**Several Imrier!.!! representatives also attended. The affidavit of Cornelius B. Oborn,
the Klaliff of William Penn substantiates Oyer's use of the word sunmen. /Jborn
states in regard to this trial; ■'Herbert C. Shav,'. . .brought a bunch of rou^h-necks into
William Penn No. 136... with levoKeri and tried to raise a not. ..He had one ot nis
rough-necks attempt to throw one of our members then being tried... .out ot the nail
and the loyal members would not stand for such rough conduct "

190 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

During April, May and June the Grand Dragon was faced with
open rebellion among the Klans which had opposed his election
and had preferred charges against him. He had precipitated this
by issuing orders revoking the charters of several Klans which
were hostile and by threatening to collect forcibly their property
and funds.*

The Klans at Coraopolis, Manor, New Kensington, Duquesne,
Homestead, Vandergrift, Jeannette, Leechburg and Latrobe suf-
fered this fate along with William Penn Klan of Pittsburgh.^"
To add insult to injury, agents were commissioned by Shaw to
attempt to re-instate these banished Klansmen at five dollars per
man and to accept new applicants at six dollars per man. The
members of these Klans, believing that the Grand Dragon was
without constitutional authority to revoke charters and determined
to resist force by force, continued to meet in their several Klaverns
and to plan new ways of resisting Shaw and the national officials
who supported him. There was some discussion of instituting
quo warranto proceedings against the Order in the civil courts.
Several of the leaders held that some of the money which had
been paid to the Realm treasury could be recovered by proving
that the Order had used funds for ultra vires purposes not
specified in the Klan Charter.

Whether or not Imperial Wizard Evans was cognizant of this
latter fact, he already had had much to anger him. Having started
on a policy of coercion, he now undertook to end this open defi-
ance by a bold legal stroke. He directed suit to be entered in the
U. S. District Court of Western Pennsylvania against Barrick-
man, Oyer and Strayer, their associates — Dr. Charles S. Hunter,
of Monessen, and William C. Davis, of Manor— and "all persons
similarly situated," praying the Court for an injunction restraining
these persons from the use of the name Ku Klux Klan and de-
manding $100,000 in damages for injury they had done to the
Order.

Evans had hoped that a damage suit of this size would bring
the recalcitrant Klansmen to their knees begging to have it with-

*Article 18, section 23 of the Constitution provided that "m the event the charter of a
Klan has been revoked or cancelled for any cause whatsoever. . .all monies at that Mail
in the possession of any ofliccr or member thereof shall automatically become the actual
monies of the Imperial treasury of this Order and same must be freely and promptly
turned over, on demand."

Revolt in Province II

drawn. Instead they accepted it as a challenge and began raising
money to fight the case. They maintained that their banishments
had been illegal and that they were still Klansmen in good stand-
ing and had a perfect right to use the name of the Order. As
an additional defense they prepared a counter-claim in which they
declared that the plaintiff Corporation had collected monies for
illegal purposes and asked on their part that the Order be re-
strained from doing further business in the State and that a
Trustee be appointed and an accounting made.

Since the rules of a Court of Equity demand that the plaintiff
must come "with clean hands" before relief can be obtained, the
hearings on this counter-claim were, from the legal point of view,
determinative. Stimulated on the one hand by the threat of
having to pay $100,000 in damages and, on the other hand, by
the hope of recovering funds from the order, the defendants
brought to light as many instances of illegal or quasi-legal acts
by the Klan as they could find witnesses to prove. Although
revealing the seamy side of the Klan in a somewhat exaggerated
way, unrelieved by any instances of commendable action, the
Court Records of this case remain the best source material for
the secret activities of the Realm organization. The cross-bill
itself contained thirty-two items alleging "undue use of funds"
and illegal practices. Most of the charges which the critics out-
side the Order had made against it were now made by the Klans-
men themselves. The unconstitutional ways in which Klansmen
had been banished and charters revoked and threats made to
remove the funds of the local Klans were, of course, included.
More important, however, were the allegations that Klan funds
had been used to enrich unduly its promoters ; to foster "disrespect
for government law and order," to spread religious prejudice and
"propaganda of bigotry and intolerance"; to "menace political
parties" by interfering with elections and by intimidating voters ;
to "stamp out private schools" and "dictate teaching forces and
curricula" ; to "interrupt and molest religious services" ; to make
"threats and intimidations" and to cause "menacing riots of mur-
der, lynching and bloodshed."

Scores of affidavits made by Klansmen were filed in support
of these allegations. While many of the statements made were
plainly based upon second hand information or even rumor and

192 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

were doubtless prompted more by a spirit of retaliation than by
one of historical accuracy, many others were made by persons
who had themselves talten part in the activity they related or had
been eye witnesses of it. Many of these people voluntarily took
the witness stand during the hearings on the cross-bill and de-
scribed the activities in detail.

The most serious charges which were brought against the Order
applied to the regime of Sam D. Rich. Testimony was given by
those who had participated in the action that, in Pennsylvania,
"under the direct authorization of the principal officers of the
state," a child had been kidnapped from the home of her grand-
parents ; that a Negro had been hung to a tree by a rope around
his neck, kicked and otherwise maltreated ; that Klansmen had
been given arms, instructed to defend themselves, and ordered to
march in direct violation of the orders of the civil authorities
with resultant rioting and loss of life, that a despotic rule had
been maintained by Klan officials with the aid, in some instances,
of special masked, black-robed men who had been used as in-
struments of terror to threaten, abuse, and on occasion physically
maltreat other Klansmen, that there had been much misappropria-
tion of funds ; and that behind much of the activity of the leaders
was the motive of enriching themselves. In connection with this
last charge, Joseph Shoemaker who, as Secretary of the chartered
Klans for over eighteen months before which time he had been
one of the leading Kleagles in the State, knew most of the State
officials well, summed up the financial transactions of the Order
by saying: "The provisions of the national charter calling for a
benevolent, religious and charitable institution is a joke ; it is
run entirely for profit."

Rich's administration did not, however, receive all the con-
demnation. Many affidavits charged Shaw as well with "inflam-
matory speeches," with "inciting to riot," and with misappropria-
tion of funds, all of which were alienating the membership and
destroying the Order. One Exalted Cyclops called him "just a
hell-raiser." Two instances when he actually precipitated vio-
lence were described and Leechburg Klansmen took the precau-
tion to have him searched for weapons before admitting him into
their Klavern.

Revolt in Province II 193

In reply to the charges against Rich, the Plaintiff, although
presenting witnesses who denied most of the allegations, did not
have a strong defense. Since a national Tribunal of the Order
had acknowledged Rich's participation in the kidnapping and
lynching episodes for which he had been banished by the Wizard,
to deny this before the civil court was absurd. To prove that
Shaw was falsely accused, however, the loyal Exalted Cyclops
throughout the state were circularized and asked to sign identical
affidavits relative to the activities of the Realm office. Seventy-
three Exalted Cyclops from as many different Klans returned the
document duly signed and sealed, each swearing that "he was
acquainted with Rev. Herbert C. Shaw" and had "heard read
numerous bulletins or communications from the Realm or State
office of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania in
which the membership of this Order have been admonished to
respect the law and the duly constituted officers of the law and
informed that those of our membership who violated the law
would be expelled from the Order for so doing ; that the teachings,
precepts, and oath of the Order required its members to obey the
laws of the land and support the officers of the law in the proper
performance of their legal duties and generally to conduct them-
selves as good citizens."

Such general denials of Klan lawlessness were weak answers
to the many specific instances of misconduct which were recited
in detail before the Court. Judge W. H. S. Thompson, before
whom the hearings were held, had no difficulty in deciding the
issue. After reciting some of the more serious violations of the
law which had been done at the command of the responsible
officers of the Order, he ruled that :

"... In view of all the facts disclosed by the evidence,
the plaintiff corporation, stigmatized as it is by its unlawful
acts and conduct, could hardly hope for judicial assistance
in a court of the United States, which is highly commissioned
to extend to all litigants before it, without distinction of race,
creed, color or condition, those high guarantees of liberty
and equality vouchsafed by the constitution of the United
States . . .

"This unlawful organization, so destructive of the rights
and liberties of the people, has come in vain asking this court
of equity for injunctive or other relief. They come with

194 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

filthy hands and can get no assistance here. Plaintiff's prayers
for relief are denied and the bill is dismissed at the cost of
the plaintiff."

The details of the case were given wide publicity in the daily
press and had much deadlier effect upon the Klan than the re-
porting of the Carnegie and Lilly riots had had. Typical of the
kindlier editorials was that which appeared in The Johnstomn
Democrat. Although generously and no doubt correctly asserting
that "ninety-five per cent of Klan membership was and is made
up of men themselves innocent of evil intent" nevertheless "they
have been and are the dupes of the higher ups." The New York
World seized upon the evidence given of Klan wrongdoing and
reported it in sensational form as a vindication of its original
vigorous opposition to the Order.* The reporters for the Pitts-
burgh Catholic Observer laughed with unholy glee at this feud
among the "Kluckers" which had torn the Order apart and was
destroying before their eyes what remained.

During the entire period from the time the damage suit was
filed by the Klan in July 1927 to the reading of the decision by
Judge Thompson on April 13, 1928, the official organ of the
Klan, The Kowrier Magazine, made no mention of the trial. In
the issue of July 1929 an inconspicuous notice was inserted with
reference to the appeal which had been taken from Judge Thomp-
son's decision. "In Pennsylvania," reported the Kourier Maga-
zine, "a gang of men instigated by the Romanists, are trying to
steal the Klan name and insignia. Naturally the Klan is trying
to prevent them. In court at Philadelphia, their lawyer declared
the Klan was 'the most despotic institution in the U. S. . . .,'
and that the Imperial Wizard was 'the chief of organized crime
in this country.' Yes sir ! He actually did !" Not a word more
was told its readers and when the Circuit Court sustained Judge
Thompson in his decision, the fact also went unmentioned. The
Fellowship Forum, under the inconspicuous one column head
placed near the bottom of the page, noted that "the case instituted
by a group of banished Klansmen in Pennsylvania . . . ended
abruptly when the court refused the petition of the malcontents
and throw the case out." It also printed an official statement of
Imperial Wizard Evans evidently written to comfqrt the Klang-

*See ante, p. 21, 23.

Revolt in Province II

195

men who knew from other sources that the Klan itself had in-
stituted the original suit and had lost its case because it had come
to court with the "unclean hands" of a law-breaker. Evans re-
gretted that the court "had impeached the integrity of hundreds
of thousands of Pennsylvanians who were Klansmen" and had
refused to allow sufficient time for him "to bring from the remote
points, where the crimes were alleged to have been committed,
public officers and other men of high repute by whom we would
have positively disproved . . . that such occurrences had taken
place."

In spite of the fact that this alibi was no doubt accepted by
many credulous Klansmen, the case proved a signal defeat for an
already greatly discredited leadership,— a leadership which, un-
fortunately, was not removed. Shaw still remained the Grand
Dragon of the Realm. The cross-bill in which the defendants
had prayed for an injunction against further operation of the
Klan in the State had been disallowed by Judge Thompson be-
cause it was not in the jurisdiction of his court to grant it.
Hiram W. Evans continued to hold his office of Imperial Wizard
although he had been called in the decision "directly responsible
for the riot and bloodshed" at Carnegie. Had these matters been
brought before the proper courts as the New York Evening Post
urged, the Order might have suf¥ered further defeat. Some steps
were taken to proceed with the quo warranto petition but the
difficulty which the defendants had had in financing the first case,
the dispute which arose between the Committee of Ten and their
chief counsel. Van A. Barrickman, over his remuneration, the
dwindling membership of the cooperating Klans, the financial loss
sustained by Rev. John F. Strayer in his attempt to sell in printed
form a part of the evidence gathered in the trial: — ^these diffi-
culties influenced the Committee to let the matter drop. Reform
had grown both wearisome and expensive.

So, while the Klan still retained the legal right to operate in
Pennsylvania and while Shaw still wore his appliqued dragon
insignia, the local Klans in western Pennsylvania rapidly disin-
tegrated. The Order tried to salvage what it could under the
provision that the property and funds of disorganized locals
belonged to the national organization. In many instances robes
and crosses and flags and typewriters were given up to the agents

196 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

who came for them. The cases were few where funds were
given up. The former officials of the abandoned Scottdale Klan
No. 37 retained enough spirit to get a court order for the
restoration of their records and property which had been taken
from them.*

With this trial in Western Pennsylvania, the secessionist move-
ments reached their climax. They had effected both men's and
women's Orders and both the eastern and western sections of the
state. In the struggle which they made against the maladministra-
tion and dictatorship of their higher officers, the participating
Klansmen had proved themselves Americans with "the spirit of
the Declaration of Independence in their blood" in far more
effective fashion than they had while making their ill-considered
claims of racial and religious superiority or while repeating the
patriotic pledges contained in their rituals.

The close of 1928 found the Realm containing a mere 10,500
members. Nineteen of every twenty who had been Klansmen
at the peak of the enrollment in the state had dropped out. Six
of every seven who still remained with the Order prior to the
Rich trial in 1926 had gone. It is doubtful if the membership
would have remained as large as 10,000 during 1928 had it not
been for the fact that Catholic Alfred E. Smith was chosen as
the Democratic candidate for President of the United States in
that year. The State office, with the aid of the Fellowship Fonim,
was able to magnify the danger of his election sufficiently to make
Klansmen forget their criticism of the Order in the hope that it
would furnish the leadership which they wanted in the anti-Smith
fight. The effect which the activities of the Order had upon this
election has already been commented upon.** In certain districts
the Protestant vote may have been swelled because of the presence
of active Klaverns, but throughout most of the State the outcome
would doubtless have been the same had the Klan been ordered
disbanded in April when Judge Thompson handed down his
decision.

*The tactics of the National office were interestingly illustrated in this instance. At-
torney Lewis C. Walkinshaw who had filed the Writ of Replevin was visited by one of
Evans' lawyers, J. H. Connaughton, and a detective who did their best to frighten him.
They presented him with an order from the Imperial Wizard saying that he was "without
authority to instigate or to prosecute a suit in the Common Pleas Court of Westmoreland
County, Pennsylvania, entitled Knights of the Ku Klux Klan vs. Kelley, et al.," and
directing him to "immediately withdraw your appearance" in this "pretended action,"

**See ante, p. 110 ff.

Revolt in Province II

197

With Hoover safely elected, however, the rank and file Klans-
men who remained in the Order found little militant work v;hich
demanded their attention. It is true that Grand Dragon Shaw
began to speak immediately of "the great campaign" to be waged
in 1932 and that the editors of the Konrier Magazine began to
give more and more space to "the menace of communism" in the
hope of raising a red scare that would rally Klansmen under the
standards of their Order, but the religious and political "crises"
had passed. By 1930, the enrollment in the state had dwindled
to less than five thousand. Those that remained, for the most
part, were residents in the eastern half of the state and found
their chief fraternal activity in the initiation of Klansmen into
the new Kwand degree and in entertaining social activities.

This change in interest from political and religious affairs to
social activities was a change which had characterized the history
of practically every "crisis organization" which had been estab-
lished since the founding of the Republic. The secret nativist
societies of the eighteen forties and nineties had been preserved
as local social clubs after their political activities had ceased. The
same was true of non-nativist groups. "The Patriots of Amer-
ica," for instance, a Society which "Coin" Harvey organized as
a belligerent free-silver Order, experienced the same transforma-
tion.^* When the free silver issue became politically dead after
1896, the "Patriots of America" did not immediately die but lin-
gered along, the interests of its members changing from silver
dollars to linen showers and dances.

By 1931 there were tell-tale items in the Klan press which
showed the Klan was undergoing a similar metamorphosis. For
instance, one might have expected the Colonel Crawford Klan of
Connellsville, during the stormy February evenings of that year,
to be engaged in planning a glorious counter attack on the
enemies of the nation. But no! Its members were practicing
for a minstrel show with which to entertain their friends and
incidentally raise a little money for Klan Haven. -'^ And York
Klan, one of the most loyal in the state : was it organizing Night
Riders to quell plotting Catholics and foreigners? Not at all.
The York Klan was becoming famous for its "White Rose Male
Chorus."^" And the Klansmen at Hamburg: were they black-
listing local enemies ? Indeed not. They were growing renowned

198 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

for their "goat lunches" which "deutschers" from the Klans of
Schuylkill Haven, Allentown, Reading, Catasauqua, Sinking
Spring, Schnecksville, Perkasie, Pottsville, Doylestown, and
Hummelstown enjoyed on occasion.-^

It is true that Klansmen sometimes listened to local orators
make addresses on "the arch fiend Communism'"^ and to im-
ported talent like Tom Heflin who felt that the Vatican and the
KremHn might both be transferred to America if Americans
were not on guard.-^ Nevertheless, they enjoyed with more
frequency, although so common an occurrence was seldom men-
tioned in the Klan press, speeches like that given by the E. C.
of Langhorne Klan when he "entertained the large audience (at
Schuylkill Haven) with comic sayings and jokes."^° Thus, while
the high command of the Klan had not yet forgotten its "cru-
sading," most of the rank and file Klansmen had settled down
in their arm-chairs "to eat buns and play charades," and wait. . .

Thus by 1930 the leaf and stock of nativism had practically
disappeared again; not so its roots. Nativism has shown itself
to be a perennial. Another coincidence of critical events, another
emotional crisis with strong leaders to raise up old ghosts and
thousands of the men and women who enrolled in the Klan will
be ready to write another chapter in the story of American
nativism. The problem of the relation of church and state has
not been solved. A continuation of the present restrictions on im-
migration will undoubtedly lessen one aspect of the cultural
struggle. Economic adjustment with its implications for politics
is, however, still painfully difficult, and there is considerable evi-
dence now to show that the economic phases of cultural adjust-
ment will bulk larger in the future history of nativism than in
the past. Indeed, they may definitely change much of its vo-
cabulary.

References

1. Testimony of Joseph Shoemaker. . , , ,^ x^, i^i

2. Affidavit made by Lemuel Peebles in connection with the Ku Klux Klan vs. Strayer,

Case No. 1987, in Equity. „..„■■ j ■

3 Told the writer in an interview by John B. Davis. Klan investigator and service man.
4. Letter of authorization signed by Sam D. Rich, dated April 28 1924.
5 This Bill of Complaint is reproduced in full in "A Report from the Committee of

Ten to Co-operating Klans and Klansmen throughout the State ', dated December 31,

1927.

Revolt in Province II

199

Refer&nces

6. Affidavit of William M. Likens who puts the amount at approximately 100,000. In
his book, "Patriotism Capitalized or Religion Turned into Gold", (Uniontown 1925),
p. 103, he specifies the amount to be $90,177.39.

7. Mimeographed Minutes of the Realm Klorero for Sunday, December 7, 1924, p. 21.

8. Ibid. p. 22. ^ , , ., ,■ , . ■

9. Taken from notes made by an Exalted Cyclops while attending this meeting.

10. Ibid.

11. Details furnished by Dr. Charles Oyer in an interview with the writer.

12. Testimony of Joseph Shoemaker, who was in charge of the Pittsburgh office during
Robinson's administration. Shoemaker was later removed from this position, pre-
sumably because he had reported Robinson's immorality.

13. The Report of the Committee of Ten, etc., p. 1.

14. Affidavit of Klansman Charles E. McKinley.

15. Report of the Committee of Ten, etc.

16. Letter to H. W. Evans under date of February 5, 1927.

17. Quoted from the Resolutions adopted by Vandergrift Klan No. 35, F. T. Cravener,
E. C. ; sent to Evans under date of March 2, 1927. Among the Klans taking similar
action were; Duquesne Klan No. 100; Latrobe Klan No. 46; Homestead Klan No.
54; New Kensington Klan No. 10; Leechburg Klan No. 143; Coraopolis Klan No. 56.

18. Dated February 28, 1927.

19. Told to the writer in an interview by Dr. Charles F. Oyer.

20. Affidavits by the following Exalted Cyclops: Harry M. Hite of Duquesne; Charles
E. France, of Leechburg; 'William G. Ihrig, of New Kensington; Charles Stewart, Jr.,
of Homestead ; Robert B. Patterson, of Coraopolis ; and others.

21. Charles E. France.

22. Sworn testimony of 'William G. Ihrig and Robert Patterson.

23. Order granted by Judge Charles D. Copeland, January 26, 1929. Case No. 1266
before the Court of Common Pleas of 'Westraoreland County, May term, 1928.

24. The Independent (N. Y.) February 12, 1927, p. 180.

25. Printed in The Kourier Magazine, the official organ of the Knights of the Ku
Klux Klan, under "Pennsylvania Notes." April, 1931.

26. Ibid. May, 1931.

27. Ibid. June and July issues, 1932.

28. Ibid. February, 1933.

29. Ibid. July, 1931.

30. Ibid. June, 1931.

CRITICAL ESSAY ON BIBLIOGRAPHY

Some Beginnings of Nativism :

For the early nativist movement in the 1830's and 1840's there
is little contemporary material available other than highly partisan
accounts. The most complete and objective of the studies con-
tinues to be that by John H. Lee: Origin and Progress of the
American Party in Politics (Phila. 1835). S. F. B. Morse was
one of the most prolific of the early propagandists of the move-
ment. His Foreign Conspiracy Against the Liberties of the
United States . . ." (N. Y. 1835) is typical. Much light is
thrown on the movement by Peter Guilday : The Life and Times
of John England, 2 volumes (1927) ; J. G. Shea: History of the
Catholic Church in the United States (N. Y. 1890). Brief
articles of importance are: James Boyd: The Irish in America
(No. American Rev. Jan. 1841, 52/191) O. S. Straus: Religious
Liberty in the U. S. (N. Y. 1896).

For the Know Nothing movement, Louis D. Scisco : Political
Nativism in New York (N. Y. 1901) is the best general ac-
count. It is not limited to a single state as the title suggests.
The sketch by H. J. Desmond: The Know Nothing Party (N. Y.
1904) has some value. Two valuable regional studies are the
monographs by L. F. Schmeckebier : The Know Nothing Party
in Maryland (Johns Hopkins Univ. Studies in History and
Political Science, vol. 17, 1899) and by George H. Haynes: The
Causes of Know Nothing Success (Am. Hist. Rev. iii/67, Oct.
1897). The partisan feeling of the time is revealed in such works
as The Sons of the Sires, a History of the Rise, Progress, and
Destiny of the American Party (Phila. 1855), An Appeal to
Workingmen (Washington, 1856), W. S. Balch : Romanism and
Republicanism Incompatible (N. Y. 1852), E. Hutchinson:
Young Sam, or Native Americans' Own Book (N. Y. 1855),
J. W. Laurens : The Crisis, or the Enemies of America Un-
masked (Phila. 1855), T. R. Whitney: A Defense of the Ameri-
can Party (N. Y. 1856). Brief summaries of the movement are
contained in such works as J. B. McMaster: A History of the

Critical Essay on Bibliography

201

People of the United States (N. Y. 1919) vol. viii, p. 82-86,
211-214, 228-229 and his The Riotous Career of the Know Noth-
ings (Form 17/524 Jl. 1894) ; T. C. Smith: Parties and Slavery
(American Nation Series, vol. 18, N. Y. 1906) ; W. F. Hewitt
The Know Nothing Party in Pennsylvania (Pennsylvania His-
tory, vol. ii, April 1935).

The standard work on the American Protective Association is
J. H. Desmond: The A. P. A. Movenient (Wash. 1912). A
critical account of the genesis of the movement appears in J. J.
Tighe: The A. P. A., Its Origin and Growth (N. Y. 1894) and
P. H. Winston: The American Catholics and the A. P. A.
(1895). Typical of the A.P.A periodicals is The A. P. A. MagOr-
zine (San Francisco, 1895-1897). The School Question is illumi-
natingly discussed in G. M. Grant: Religious Instruction in
State Schools (Edu. Rev. 3/40 Jan. 1892) ; I. A. Mooney: The
Catholic's Controversy about Education (Edu. Rev. 3/237 Mar.
1892) ; Thomas Bouquillon: A Reply to Mooney (Edu. Rev. 3/365
Ap. 1892); C. B. Fallen: The Catholics and the Public Schools
(Edu. Rev. Dec. 1892) ; W. M. West : Those Faribault Schools
(Christian Union, 46/782, Oct. 29, 1892). Important articles on
other phases of the movement include W. C. Doane : Hostility to
Catholics (No. Amer. Rev. 158/573 May 1894) ; W. J. H. Tray-
nor : The Policy and Power of the A. P. A. (No. Amer. Rev. 162/
659 June 1896); F. R. Coudert: The American Protective
Association (Forum 17/513 July 1894).

The Revival of the Ku Klux Klan and Its Spread into
Pennsylvania :

The literature relative to the recent Ku Klux Klan is enormous.
The best early bibliographies were those prepared by the U. S.
Library of Congress, Division of Bibliography: No. 533 (1921),
No. 738 (1923) and No. 846 (1924). Julia E. Johnson: The
Ku Klux Klan (The Reference Shelf, i/no. 10, N. Y. 1923)
contains a selected bibliography. M. L. Barchelder compiled a
useful Digest of Laws of Various States Relating to the Ku
Klux Klan (N. Y. State Library Ass'n, Albany 1923).

The official organs of the Order were The Standard (N. Y.)
and various state editions of The Fiery Cross (1923-1925).
Although Ohio, New Jersey, Indiana, and West Virginia had

202

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

separate editions, no Pennsylvania edition was published. The
Fiery Cross was absorbed by The National Kotirier which was
published in regional editions such as the North Atlantic edition,
the Eastern and Middle edition, etc. At the Atlanta office was
published The Imperial Knight Hawk (1923-1924) which was
continued as The Kourier Magazine (Dec. 1924 to date). In Penn-
sylvania there was the very temporary Keystone American (1924)
and an attempt was made to publish The Pittsburgh Daily Dis-
patch. Not owned but heartily endorsed by the Klan was the
anti-Catholic Fellowship Forum (Washington, D. C), undoubt-
edly the most influential periodical which was circulated among
Pennsylvania Klansmen with official sanction.

Among the documentary materials are such important items
as the Charter of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan granted by
the Superior Court of Fulton County, Georgia; The Constitution
and Laws of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, Inc. (Atlanta
1921, 1926); W. J. Simmons: Imperial Instructions, Document
No. I (Atlanta 1918) ; The Kloran or White Book (Atlanta
1916) ; The Minutes of the Imperial Kloncilium, May 1 and 2,
1923 (Atlanta, 1923) containing copies of the litigation instituted
by W. J. Simmons against H. W. Evans and the Knights of the
Ku Klux Klan ; Papers Read at the First Annual Meeting of the
Grand Dragons (Atlanta, 1923) ; The Proceedings of Imperial
Klonvokations , not all of which were published as were The
Proceedings of the Second Imperial Klonvokation at Kansas City,
Missouri (N. P., 1924) ; Klansman's Manual (1924) compiled
and issued under the direction of the Knights of the Ku Klux
Klan. An indispensable source for the early history of the move-
ment in the South is The Ku Klux Klan, Hearings before the
Rules Committee of the House of Representatives, 67th Congress,
First Session (Washington, 1921).

The "Minutes" of the various Realm Kloreros in Pennsylvania
were sometimes mimeographed (often in abridged or deleted
form) and circulated among the local Klans. The files of the
Pennsylvania Realm Office are neither complete nor available to
non-members of the Order. The personal files of Van A. Bar-
rickman, Esq., of Pittsburgh, John F. Strayer of McKeesport,
A. L. Cotton of West View, and of Lemuel Peebles of Kittanning
are as complete, perhaps, as those possessed by any individuals

Critical Essay on Bibliography

203

in western Pennsylvania. Dayton Laubach and William G. See-
miller, both of Philadelphia, have important personal collections
of material. Most of the official correspondence, the minutes
of meetings and literature sent from the state or national head-
quarters for distribution which was once in the possession of
former Kligrapps (secretaries) of local Klaverns has not been
preserved. When the Order was discredited, much of this ma-
terial was considered to be dangerously implicating and was de-
stroyed. Some was collected by state officials. What disposition
they made of it is not known by this writer. Court records of
the litigation growing out of the Carnegie and Lilly riots are
available at Pittsburgh and Ebensburg. Most important of all
Klan suits was Case No. 1897 in Equity in the U. S. District
Court for Western Pennsylvania (1927-1928), the files of which
are available in the Post Office Building at Pittsburgh.

Numerous general studies of the Ku Klux Klan have been
published. Among the best balanced are Stanley Frost: The
Challenge of the Klan (Indianapolis, 1924) and John M. Meck-
lin: The Ku Khix Klan, a Study of the American Mind (N. Y.
1924). Of somewhat less value is Henry P. Fry: The Modern
Ku Klux Klan (Boston 1922). A scholarly evaluation of the
movement as a phenomenon in American culture appears in
Horace M. Kallen : Culture and Democracy in the United States
(N. Y. 1924, p. 9-43). Reuben Maury: The Wars of the Godly
(N. Y. 1928) and F. Tannenbaum : Darker Phases of the South
(N. Y. 1924) treat the Klan critically but with considerable
perspective.

A list of selected readings from current periodicals and
pamphlets has been compiled by Julia E. Johnson : The Ku Klux
Klan (The Reference Shelf, i/no. 10, N. Y. 1923). Attempts
to explain certain phases of the movement are made by F. Tan-
nenbaum : The Ku Klux Klan, its Social Origin in the South
(Century 105/873 Ap. 1923) and Frank Bohn: The Ku Klux
Klan Interpreted (Amer. Jour, of Sociology 30/385, 1925). The
Americanism of the Klan is competently debated in Is the Ku
Klux Klan unAnierican, Pro and Con (Forum 75/305 Feb.
: 1926); W. R. Pattangall: Is the Ku Klux Klan un-American?
(Forum 74/321 S '25) ; H. W. Evans: The Klan, Defender of

204 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

Americanism (Forum 74/801 D '25) ; H. W. Evans: The Klan's
Fight for Americanism (No. Amer. Rev. 223/33 Mar. '26).

The early days of the Klan in Pennsylvania are briefly de-
scribed in a short manuscript by Van A. Barrickman found in
the personal papers of Rev. J. F. Strayer. Statistical information
relative to the membership of local Klans is scattered through the
affidavits and testimony made in connection with the Klan suit
No. 1897 in Equity mentioned above.

The Klan Changes Hands:

For the ousting of Simmons from the control of the Klan see
Depositions of William J. Simmons and of D. C. Stephenson
filed as evidence in the Klan suit No. 1897 in Equity. These
depositions are reproduced in abridged form in Behind the White
Mask of the Ku Klux Klan (Scottdale, 1928) compiled by J.
F. Strayer, C. S. Hunter and W. C. Davis. See also W. J.
Simmons: The Klan Unmasked (Atlanta, 1923) and America's
Menace (Atlanta, 1926). The litigation which followed the oust-
ing of Simmons is reproduced together with a discussion be-
tween the Evans and Simmons factions within the national execu-
tive council in The Minutes of the Imperial Kloncilium of May
1 and 2, 1923 (Atlanta, 1923).

The hearings subsequent to the murder of Thomas Abbott
are printed in The Martyred Klansman (no author, Pgh. 1923).
The evidence submitted in the trial of Patrick McDermott for
the murder of Abbott is available in the Allegheny County Build-
ing, Pittsburgh. The evidence submitted in the trial of the rioters
at Lilly is available in the Court House at Ebensburg.

The Organization of the Klan:

Copies of The Constitution and Laws of the Knights of the
Ku Klux Klan (Atlanta, 1921) were widely distributed and are
generally available. Slightly revised The Constitution . . . was
published again (Atlanta, 1926) and since that time minor amend-
ments — chiefly strengthening the executive power — ^have been
passed in the national Klonvokations. The Kourier magazine does
not reproduce these amendments and one must go to The Pro-
ceedings ... of the Klonvokations in question to find them.
Important interpretations of the Klan Constitution and Laws . . .

Critical Essay on Bibliography

205

given by national officials are reported in the Minutes of the
(Pemia.) State Klorero, December 6, 1924 (mimeographed). The
government of the military branch of the Order is set forth in
The Constitution of the Klavaliers of the Knights of the Ku
Klux Klan of the State of Pennsylvania. A few of the General
Orders of the Klavalier Commander-in-Chief are available in
private collections. Lemuel Peebles (sometimes written Peoples)
of New Kensington and Otto Guilden have important papers in
their possession relative to the Klavaliers.

Regarding the practical administration of the Klan in Penn-
sylvania, there is much valuable testimony filed in connection
with the Klan suit No. 1897 in Equity. Especially important is
the testimony of Joseph Shoemaker, organizer and for a time
officer in charge of Chartered Klans in the Realm, Grand Dragon
Herbert C. Shaw, Lemuel Peebles, one of the early organizers
of the Realm, Roy Barclay and John B. Davis, investigators or
G-men, and dozens of Exalted Cyclops of local Klaverns.

Fraternalism :

The Oath of Allegiance and The Ku Klux Klan Kreed con-
tain typical statements of the self-sacrificing clannishness which
the founder of the Order hoped to inculcate in its members.
The expression of this fraternalism in local Klaverns through
committee activities is outlined in The Klan in Action (Pamphlet
F-102, no date). Social activities which became a feature of
the "Demonstrations," "field meets" and picnics of the Order are
evidenced in the hand-bills and posters used to advertise these
afifairs and in the printed programs which were prepared in some
cases. Considerable space is given to the social activities of Penn-
sylvania Klansmen in The Kourier Magazine under Pennsylvania
Notes. Circular letters mailed periodically from Grand Dragon
Shaw's office contain many references to demonstrations and
social gatherings which were given official approval. Record of
the charitable activities of local Klaverns was sometimes kept by
the Kligrafifs and after 1925 appeared in the Klaveni minutes as
the reports of Welfare Committees. Donations to the Lilly and
Abbott funds were often reported in The Kourier Magazine.
Information regarding the administration of these funds occurs
in the Transcript of Testimony, Case 1897 in Equity and in the

206 The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

Minutes of the State Klorero, December 7, 1924 (mimeographed).
The Klan Haven Association is discussed in the Mary I. Goodwin-
Van A. Barrickman correspondence of February 1928 (Private
Papers of J. F. Strayer).

Political Activities:

Of all the activities of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan there
are none concerning which there is less documentary evidence
than those in the field of local politics. Secrecy was most care-
fully observed here. Some anonymous cards are preserved en-
titled The People's Choice, others with the heading Vote for
Candidates Endorsed by the Patriotic League . . . which con-
tained lists of candidates approved by local Klans in secret kon-
klave. The "Counter Claim" filed by the defendants in the Klan
suit No. 1897 in Equity contains charges against the Order for
un-American political practices but little evidence was submitted
during the trial in substantiation of these political charges. The
personal testimony of former Klansmen is almost the only source
of information on local political action. There was, of course,
no attempt to cover up Klan opposition to Catholic candidates or
to political activities by Catholic clergy. On this point the Klan
attitude is summarized by Imperial Wizard Evans : The Cath-
olic Question as Viewdd by the Ku Klux Klan (Current Hist.
26/563 July 1927). The Klan's poHtical strength was estimated
by Evans : Ballots Behind the Ku Klux Klan (Worlds Work
55/243 Jan. 1928). The best account of the Klan's anti-Catholic
political activities appears in Michael Williams : The Sliadow of
the Pope (N. Y. 1932). This work is well documented and is
especially good for the 1924 and 1928 campaigns against Alfred
E. Smith. Little of the material used in this work, however,
is drawn from the Pennsylvania Realm. For the Klan's political
activities in this state, of special importance are the addresses of
Grand Dragon Rich and Imperial Wizard Evans delivered at
Conneaut Lake and reported in the Pittsburgh Gazette Times of
October 7, 1924 ; a mimeographed communication from the Realm
Office entitled The Klan and the Roman Hierarchy (June 16,
1927) ; two folders distributed by Realm officials: The Ku Klux
Klan Discloses its Position on the Presidency (1927) and Why
the Ku Klux Klan Opposed the World Court (1927) ; and the

Critical Essay on Bibliography 207

mimeographed catechisms: A Presidential Meeting and The Mexi-
can Question. Detailed election returns for the presidential elec-
tions of 1924 and 1928 are available in Pennsylvania State
Manud, 1925-1926 and Pennsylvania Manual, 1929. The texts
of the klan Bills, Nos. 1022-1025 inclusive, introduced during
the 1927 session of the Assembly are available in the Library of
the Senate at Harrisburg.

Religious Activities:

For the religious tone of the national and state conventions
of the Klan the "Proceedings" and "Minutes" of Klonvokations
and Kloreros are valuable. The religious elements in the initiations
and ritual are set forth in The Kloran or White Book (1916).
There was also an official Klan Funeral Service (mimeographed) .
Church visitations and donations were usually reported in the
local press. The Belleview visitation received national publicity
(Literary Digest, May 5, 1923). For Klan hymnology the collec-
tion of hymns and songs edited by Rev. P. S. Wight: American
Hymns (Buffalo, no date) is typical. Much of the more popular
Klan music was recorded and purchasable as Victrola records.

Discussion of the general religious issues between the Klan
and various religious groups is contained in: George S. Clason:
Catholic, Jew, Ku Klux Klan: What they believe— where they
conflict (Chicago, 1924); W. E. Garrison: Catholicism, and the
American Mind (Chicago, 1928) ; Thomas M. Conroy: The Ku
Klux Klan and the American Clergy (Ecclesiastical Rev. 70/47
Jan. 1924) ; H. W. Evans : The Klan of Tomorrow and The
Klan Spiritual (Kan. City 1924) ; Protestants Disowning the
Ku Klux {Literary Digest 75/33 Nov. 25, 1922).

The Klan and the Schools:

The Klan position regarding education is stated by H. W.
Evans: The Public School Problem in America (1924) and
by an official Klan pamphlet entitled The Obligation of American
Citizens to Free Public Schools (no date). The Catholic point
of view is adequately revealed in J. A. Burns: Catholic Educa-
tion (N. Y.. 1917) and in P. J. McCormick: History of Edu-
cation (Washington, 1915). The Klan's arguments against what
they called un-American text-books were largely taken from the

208

The Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

pamphlets of C. G. Miller, one of W. R. Hearst's devotees who
expanded his findings and published them later under the title
The Poisoned Loving-Cup (Chicago, 1928).

The Women of the Ku Klux Klan

For the organization of the women's Order and its relation
to the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan see Proceedings of the
Second Imperial Klonvokation, Knights of the Ku Klux Klan
(1924) p. 110-130. The organization of the women's Order
is set forth in The Constitution and Laws of the Women of the
Ku Klux Klan (1923). The private files of the former Excel-
lent Commander, Mrs. Mary I. Goodwin (Birmingham, Ala-
bama) are the richest private source for the history of the Order
during its first four years in Pennsylvania. Among the private
papers of Rev. John F. Strayer of McKeesport are copies of
many of the documents in Mrs. Goodwin's possession. The
Goodwin-Barrickman correspondence is rich in material. Ir-
regular Bulletins of the Meetings of Klan Haven Association
were issued. Especially important is that dated April 22, 1927.
Also valuable are the letters by Imperial Representative Martha
Tumley addressed to all Klanswomen under dates of February
21 and August 1, 1927. Considerable data of unequal worth
appears in the evidence submitted in connection with the Klan
suit No. 1897 in Equity. Among the more important items in
these records are the Deposition of Imperial Commander Robbie
Gill Comer and the affidavits filed by Cora V. Brubaker, Cecelia
Sacrey and Mary I. King.

The Decline of the Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania

Apparently authentic statistics of Klan membership by states
appeared in the Washington Post for November 2, 1930, Section
I, pages 1 and 14. While no source for the statistics is given,
Klan officials to whom the writer has submitted the statistics
of Klan membership in Pennsylvania have judged them ac-
curate. For the controversy within Philadelphia County over
P. M. Winter's leadership, the private files of Dayton Laubach
and of William G. Seemiller are most important sources of in-
formation. P. M. Winter has stated his own point of view in
What Price Tolerance (Washington, 1928). The Transcript of

Critical Essay on Bibliography

209

Testimony, Case 1897 in Equity contains considerable testimony
relative to the Black Robed Gang of Philadelphia.

For the open hostility in western Pennsylvania over the ad-
ministration of Sam D. Rich, the best printed collection of
documents and correspondence for the years 1926 and 1927 is
The Decline of the Ku Klux Klan in Pennsylvania (No place,
December 31, 1927) compiled by J. F. Strayer, C. S. Hunter
and W. C. Davis as a Report of the Committee of Ten to Co-
operating Klansmen (subtitle). The Court Records of Case
1897 in Equity include scores of affidavits, many exhibits, two
folio volumes of testimony and lengthy depositions by W. J.
Simmons, D. C. Stephenson and Robbie Gill Comer. Long
excerpts from the depositions of Simmons and Stephenson to-
gether with some of the testimony regarding the Black Robed
Gang and the Decision of Judge Thompson are reproduced
under title of Behind the White Mask of the Ku Klux Klan
(237 pages, Scottdale, 1928). This was compiled by Strayer,
Hunter, and Davis as a second Report of the Committee of Ten
to Cooperating Klansmen.

One of the chief organizers and state officials prior to 1926
who incidentally took no part in the Klan trial, namely, A. L.
Cotton, had in his possession (1933) — so he said — the member-
ship rolls of the Realm and other valuable documentary ma-
terials but refused to allow this writer any access to them.

INDEX

Abbott Fund, 92
Abbott, Thomas. 53, 92
AUentown Klan, 29, 197
Altoona Klan, 27, 187 , . _

American Printing & Manufacturing Co.,
94

American Party, 4, 99

American Protective Association, 8-15, 99;
founding, 8; religious and economic
causes for growth, 9-10; Catholic
school issue, 10; press, 10-11; results,
12-13

A. P. A. Magazine, 10
American Protestant Union, 4
American Republican Party, 4
"American System", the, 3
Anglicans, 2 , a

Anti-Catholic principles, Klan. 103 a.
Atkins, F. W., 25, 27
Atlanta Klan, 48
Audit of 1924-1925, Klan, 81-82

Bailes, L. P., 9in ^ ^. ,,

Banishment: method of, 75; Wizards
power of, 75-76 ; controversy over, 167
fi. ; of Barrickman and Strayer, 188

Barclay, Roy 52, 55, 56

Barker, 7

Barr, Mrs. Daisy Douglas, 152, 159

Barrickman, Van A., 84, 186. 188-190, 195

Behling, Mrs. Minnie. 92

Bell, A. H., 185

Bennett Law, 10

"Bible Commonwealth", 2

Bible reading in schools, 5. 139-140

Bible Readings for Schools, by Nathan C.

Schaeffer, 141
Black Robed Gang. 60. 171 flE.
B'Nai B'Rith, 99
Bolan, Harry, 55
Bowers, H. F., 8

Boycott: of Catholics. 94; of Klansmen,
170 fl.

Bristol demonstration, 57

Brown Office Building. 80

Brulus Letters, by S. F. B. Morse. 4

Bryan. William Jennings. 165

Bucke. Rev. J. E. A., 127

Burns, J. A. 135

Butler, Calvin, 187

Cantey, William O.. 170-171

Cantey. Mrs. William O. (Pearl). 158 ff.

Canwin Klan. 157»

Carlberg, A. T., 180

Carnegie Demonstration and Riot, 52 tt, 92

Carrol Hall Ticket, 4

Catasauqua Klan, 198

"Catholic Bible." 140. 141 .

Catholic Church: growth of. 6. 9; emphasis

on Unity. 104; school policy, 10, 135

ff.

Catholic Clergy and the Solution, 132
Catholic Observer, 194
Catholic University, 106
Central Klan #32 (Pittsburgh), 180
Charities, Klan, 88 ff.
Charters to Klans, granting of, 73
Clark, Rev. J. R., 152
Clarke. Edward Young. 18-27 passim; 48,
59. 79

Clay, Henry, 5

Cleveland, Grover, election of, 12

Colescott, James. 156. 187

Comer. James A.. 34. 45. 94, 151, 155,

159, 160, 166
Committee of Ten. Western Penna., 184,

195

Committees. Klan: Civic. Public Schools,

Governmental. Intelligence, 78-79 ;

Welfare, 90; Sick, Funerals and

Lodges of Sorrow. 91
Common schools: see Public Schools
Communism. 116. 198
Community Chests. 91
Connaughton. J. H.. 196»
Connellsville Klan, 197
Constitution, Klan, Ch. v, passim, 62 ff.,

168; of Klavaliers, 76-77
Coolidge. Calvin. 115
Coraopolis Klan, 190
Cotton. A. L.. 25-28. 49. 60, 151, 177
Cotton, Mrs. A. L., 151
Couch. Dr. G. D., 17
Craig, Dr. W. R.. 127
Cross Burnings. 58-59
Curran, Rev. J. J.. 132

Daily Dispatch Publishing Co.. 58. 95,

181, 182
Daugherty, Rev. J. F., 34, 130
Daughters of the American Revolution, 116
Davis. John B.. 73«, 177
Davis. John W., Presidential nominee. 108
Davis. William C. 190
Davis, Mrs. William C, 151
Democratic Party, attitude toward nativists,

5, 109

Demonstrations, Klan, 50-57. 87 ff.. 92. 176
Dempster. Rev. W. J., 34. 52. 120. 130-
131. 182

Dent, Rev. Fred R., 34, 130, 177
Depressions, economic: of 1873, 8 ; of 1893,

12 ; post-war, 25. 165
Detroit Klonvokation of Women's Order.

159

Doge, The, portrait by Bellini. 146
Donations to churches and ministers, 91 ff-,
123

Doylestown Klan. 198
Dues, Klan, see Revenues
Duquesne Klan, 190

Edge, J. A., 185

Edwards Compulsory School Law, 10
Elections: of 1844, 5; of 1854. 7 ; of 1892.

12; of 1896. 13; of 1920. 38; of

1924, 108; of 1928, 108-111
Emperor of Klan, powers of, 64
Empire Mutual Life Insurance Co.. 94-95
English Junto. 2

Eucharistic Congress. Chicago, 15, 108, 110
Evans, Hiram Wesley (Imperial Wizard).

35, 45, 52-54. 59-60, 67, 79, 109.

119, 150«, 187 ff.

Faribault Plan, 10

Federal Department of Education, proposed,
138

Fellowship Forum, 83, 110, 125, 147, 153.

182, 183 ff.. 194, 196
Firearms, use of, 57

(210)

Index

211

Fleming, Rev. J. E., 34
Flowers Product Co., 95. 180 ff.
Forgery of Encyclical, 11
Forrest, General Nathan B., 48
Fraternalism, 86-96 passim
Frazier, Samuel, 26
Freeman, Morris E., 28
Frost, Stanley, 41

Gates City Robe Factory, 94

Gibbons, Cardinal, 15

Gildcn, Otto G., lln

Gill, Miss Robie, 150-151, 157, 159

G-men, Klan, 68

Goodrich, Mrs. Claudia, 156

Goodwin, Mrs. Mary I., 151-155, 159-160

Grady, Judge Henry A. of N. Car., 47

Grand Dragons, selection and functions of,

66, 68, 77
Grand Tribunal, 74
Greene, Ward, 16, 19
Greensburg Klan, 178
Grise, George P., 182
Guardians of Liberty, 15

Hamburg Klan, 197
Hamilton, Alexander, 2
Harrisburg Wreckers, 60
Harvey, "Coin". 197
Hazelwood Klan, 102
Heflin, Thomas A., 34, 109, 198
Heidler, I. F., 180
Hitler, Chancellor Adolf, 116
Holy Alliance, 3
Homestead Act, 8
Homestead Klan, 27, 190
Homestead Wreckers, 55, 60
Hoover, Herbert, 110
Horner, Franklin, 157w
Houston Convention of Democratic Party,
109

Howard, H. C, 55
Hubbard, Elbert, 11
Hummelstown Klan, 198
Hunter, Dr. Charles S., 190
Hylan, Mayor, 165

I. K. K. D. of F., 172 ff.

Immigration: Irish, 6; Catholic, 15; Quota

Act, 1924, 113
Imperial Palace, 80
Imperial Wizard, powers of, 65 ff.
Imps, 164

Independent Klan, the, 175

Indiana (Pa.) Klan, 96

Indictments: of Sam Rich, 180; of Strayer,

Barrickman, et al., 190
International Music Company, 40
Irish immigrants, 3
Irwin Klan, 96

Jacobins, 2
Jeffersonian, The, 17
Johnstown Democrat, The, 194
Johnstown Klan, 27

Junction City (Jeannette) Klan, 180, 190
Junior Order of American Mechanics, 99
Junior Order of the K. K. K., 68

Kellogg, Frank B., 115
Keystone American, 58, 147
Keystone State Klan, 180
K. D. of F. 172 ff.
Kidney, Elmer, 129
Klan Haven, 89, 93, 154, 197

Klan Haven Association, 154 ff. ; reorgani-
zation, 156 ff.

Klavaliers, 76 ff.

Kleagle, functions of, 71 ff.

Klectoken, 20, 25, 68, 73, 74, 79

Kloncilium, structure and powers of, 64 ff.

Klonvokation: organization and functions,
63 ff. ; of 1922, 45-46, 149; of 1924,
120, 187>;

Klorero: organization and functions, 6869;
at DuBois, 70, 187

Knights Kamellia (K-Duo), 76, 81, 164

Knights of Columbus, 99, 112, 115

Knights of the Great Forest, 76

Knights of the Ku Klux Klan: founding,
15 ff.; lawlessness, 20-21, 60, 191-194;
exposures and investigations, 21-23;
membership in Pa., 30, 162 ; principles,
31-34, 86 ff., 98 ff., 118 ff., 134 ff..
139, 163 ; lectures, 34; strategy, 35;
types of activities, 20, 39-44, 86 ff., 122
ff., 142 ff., 191 ; ousting of Simmons,
45-48 ; Evans-Stephenson regime, 48 ff. ;
demonstrations, 50 ff. ; type of people
joining, 60; organization, 62 ff. ; So-
cial activities, 86 ff. ; business enter-
prises, 95 ff. ; political principles and
activities, 97 ff. ; criteria for choice of
candidates, 102 ff. ; anti-catholic em-
phasis, 103 ff. ; opposition to LafoUette
and Al. Smith, 108 ff. ; legislation
sponsored in Pa., 112 ff.; hostility to
World Court and League of Nations,
113 ff.; Klan Kreed and Ritual, 118;
Songs, 121; church visitations, 122 ff. ;
religious effects of Klan, 124-130;
hostility to Catholic schools and
teachers, 135, 144 ff. ; Bible and flag
donations, 142 ; subsidizes women's
Order, 150; decline of Klan, 162 ff. ;
criticism of leaders and policies by
Klansmen, 163 ff. ; trouble in eastern
Pa., 169 ff. ; indictment of Rich, 176-
184; criticism of Herbert Shaw, 186
ff. ; banishments land revocation 0:6
charters, 188 ff. ; the $100,000 damage
suit, 191 ff. ; effects, 194 ff.

Know Nothing Party, vi, 6-8

Kourier Magazine, 71, 83, 95, 147, 194,
197

Kreed, Klan, 118
Kwand degree, 164, 197

LaFollette, Robert M., 108
Lambing, Father, 54
Lancaster Klan, 96
Latrobe Klan, 190
Laubach, Dayton, 171 ff.
Lawlessness, Klan, 20-21, 60, 191 ff.
Lawrence, Charles, 158, 169
League of Nations, 38, 113 ff.
Leechburg Klan, 190, 192
Legislation, proposed by Klan, 112 ff.
Lehighton Klan, 73n
Lehman, Rev. Bruce, 34
Leo XIII, 11

Lewis, Charles B., 156, 174
Liberals, Klan criticism of, 35-36
Liberty Bell Klan (Phila.), 169, 172
Lilly fund, 92, 183
Lilly riot, 56, 92
Lincoln Klan, 27, 176

Literary Digest, Klan hostility toward, 146

Littleton, Rev. I. B., 127

Lopus, Sam, 179

Lusk Laws. 38

Lyle, Dr. David M., 127

212

Index

McCall, H. C, 45
McDivitt, Dr. Michael, 127-129
McKeesport Klan, 180
McNeel, Harry, 26, 58
Markwell, Mrs. Lulu A., 150, 159
Marriage, Klan attitude toward, 107, 112,
113

Martyred Klansman, The, 53

Masonic Order, 99 -• ,„ rr

Membership of Klan in Pa., vii, 30 ff., 162

Menace, The, 15, 125

Mer Rouge murders, 146

Metternich, Age of, 1

Mexican intervention, 109, 115

Miles, John C, 43, 181

Military Line of Communication, 78

Military Order of Klavaliers, 76 ft.

Miller, James A., 55, 84

Morse, Samuel F. B., 4

Mt. Pleasant Klan, 27, 176

Muzzey, Dr. David S., vui, 146

Napoleon, Age of, 1 , ^ , ,
National Department of Education and

Publicity, Klan, 147
National Service Club, 94
Native American Party, 4, 99
Nativism: definition, vi, (1) ; organized

nationally, 4
Naturalization ceremony, Klan, 118
Nevins, Rev. Clyde, 129
New Haven Klan, 17 5«
New Kensington Klan, 27
New York Evening Post, 195
Netv York World, exposure of Klan, 21,

23, 194 . ^, .

Night Riders, in Reading, 60; in Ohio,

172

Non Silba Club, 184

Oborn, Cornelius B., 189»

Offenses, major Klan, 75

Old Glory Klan (Phila.), 169

Omaha American, 10

Orbison, James, 159, 185

Order of the Star Spangled Banner, 6

Organization, Klan: national, 62 ft. ;
Realm, 67 ff. ; Provincial, 70 ff. ; Klan-
ton, 71 ff. ; higher degrees, 76; Klava-
liers, 77 ff. ; military line of communi-
cation, 78 ; revenues, 79 ff.

Orphanage, Klan, see Klan Haven

Oyer, Dr. Charles F., 184 ff, 190

Papal infallibility, 104, 107

Parochial school issue, 4, 5, 10, 134

Patriotic American, The, 11

Patriotic Order of the Sons of America, 99

Patriots of America, 197

Pattangall, W. L., 35

Peebles, Lemuel, 26, 29, 55, 57, 108, 177

"Pennsylvania Dutch", 29, 87, 123

Perkasie Klan, 198

Pinchot, Gifford, 93, 108, 154

Pledge of Loyalty of Kleagle, 72

Political candidates, Klan, 99 ff.

Political hostility to Catholics and foreign-
ers, 102 ff., 106 ff.

Political principles, Klan, 97 ff.

Pottsville Klan, 198

Presbyterian Banner, The, 126»

Press: criticism of Klan, 21-23, 58, 194 ;
Klan, see Kourier Magazine, Daily
Dispatch, Keystone American, Fellow-
ship Forum

Public Schools: Klan attitude toward, 134
ff. ; democratic control of, 136; con-
solidation, 137-138; Klan criteria for.
139, Bible reading in, 139 ff. ; flag
donations to, 143

Quincy, Josiah, 3
Quakers, 2

Rail Splitter Press, 38

Ransey, Kyle, 45, 70, 184, 186, 187

Ransdell, U. S. Senator of Louisiana, 132

Reading demonstration, 57

Reading Klan, 198

Reed, Sen. James, 113

Religious influence on Klan members, 124
Revenues, Klan ; Imperial, 79-80 ; Realm,

80-81 ; local, 82
Revocation of charters, 168, 190
Rich, Sam D., 25-27, 49, 52, 59, 108,

151, 161, 166, 176-186 passim, 192
Risher, Carl, 26
Robes, Klan, 79

Robinson, J. T., U. S. Senator from

Arkansas, 109
Robinson, W. L., 186-187

SatoUi, Msgr., 10
Saul, Rev. J. F. V., 17
Savage, Fred L., 22
Schaeffer, Nathan C, 141
Schnecksville Klan, 198
Schools: see Parochial schools. Public
schools

Schuylkill Haven Klan, 198
Scottdale demonstration, 54-56
Scottdale Klan, 55, 84, 97, 196
Secrecy: of Know Nothings, 7 ; of Klan,

21, 22, 101
Seemiller, William G., 171, 174
Service Clubs, 91
Sesqui Centennial (Phila.), 108
Shaw, Herbert C, 59. 70-71, 107-109, 187

ff., 192 ff.
Shoemaker, Joseph, 26, 177, 192
Simmons, William J., 16, 27, 45, 59, 79.

150

Sinking Spring Klan, 198

Smail, James B., 179

Smith, Alfred E., '108 ff., 196

Songs, Klan, 121 ff.

Southern Publicity Association, 18

Spratt, Grand Dragon, 187

Stephenson, D. C, 30, 46, 48-49, 166

Stough, Grand Dragon, 71

Strayer, Rev. John P., viii, 34, 88, 178,

186, 195
Super-Secret Society, 171 ff.
Suspension of Klansmen, 167. 179

Taylor. A. B.. 88

Taylor. Berwin A., 169

Taxes, Klan, 79-81

Thompson, "Big Bill", 165

Thompson, Judge W. H. S., 193 ff.

Tip-toe Traitors, 2

Titles of Klan officials, 62n

Tories, 3

Trial of Strayer, Barrickman et al., 191

Tribunals, Klan; 74-75, 167

Triple-S Society, see Super-Secret Society

Tumulty, Joe, 106

Turner, Walter, 169

Turnley, Miss Martha, 156, 160

Twenty-Six Club, 17 5

Tyler, Mrs. Elizabeth (Bessie), 18-19, 23

Index

213

U. S. District Court for Western Penna.,
190

Urmy, Dr. R. B., 129 S-
Ursuline Convent, 4

Vance, James S., 182 ff.
Vandergrift Klan, 190
Vare, William S., 188
Vatican, 198
Volstead Act, 105

Walkinshaw, Lewis C, 196«
Warren G. Harding Klan (Phila.), 169,
175

Waynesboro Klan, 87
Weber, George S., 112
Westmoreland County Klan, 178
Whitesell, Frank A., 169
Wight, P. W., 88, 121
Wilkinsburg Klan, 177

William Penn Klan: in Phila., 169; m

Pittsburgh, 184, 189n, 190
Williams, Rev. G. A., 34

Williams, Michael, editor Commonweal.
132

Wilson, Woodrow, }8, 106

Winter, Paul M., 60, 158 ff., 161, 169 ff.

Women of the Ku Klux Klan: jom men's
Order in social affairs. 87 ; Bible dona-
tions of, 142 ; founding, 149 ; spread
into Pa., 151; activities, 152 ff. ; Klan
Haven, 154 ff.; opposition to Mrs.
Goodwin, 155 ff.; difficulties in Phila.
county, 158 ff.; replacement of Mrs.
Goodwin, 160 ; secession and decline,
160 ff.

Women's Christian Patriotic League, 161
Woods, H. C, 92
World Court, 113 ff-
World War debt, 114

Yellow Dog degree, 83, 164
York Klan, 197

Zumbrunn, Attorney for Evans, 185 ff.